Container shortages result in big shipping cost increase
Posted: 19-03-2021
Aggressive competition for shipping containers means costs to increase by 300%*
As if businesses didn’t have enough problems! The shortage of containers in Asia is causing no end of headaches for those who want to import manufactured goods to the UK. And the bad news - it doesn’t seem to be about to sort itself out either!
All this has come about due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Uneven global economic recovery and the imbalance of trade has resulted in containers being in the wrong place at the wrong time. These ubiquitous metal container boxes used to ship goods all around the globe seem to be sat empty in container yards in the UK and the EU. And with a shortage of loads required to be returned to Asia, there isn’t any sign of the pressure on containers in the Far East being relaxed any time soon!
So, what does this have to do with buying meltblown spill control absorbents you might ask?
Well, quite a bit really. With a large percentage of meltblown spill control absorbents coming from China, Turkey and the USA they all have one thing in common – they all arrive in the UK in metal shipping containers. And with inflated shipping costs, unpredictable delays and pressure on availability, the lower cost benefits of readily available and cheaper overseas manufactured meltblown absorbents are fast losing their appeal!
It's the very nature of meltblown absorbents that makes their shipping problematical. Meltblown absorbents are a high volume and relatively low-weight product. This means that they take up a lot of room. More often than not, they are packed tightly into a container as the volume is the governing restriction rather than the weight. This can be a problem because it means that absorbent spill control product, particularly in the bottom half of the container, gets squashed which reduces the ‘loft’ (the space between fibres) in absorbents which is important.
Once meltblown product is squeezed and flattened, it does not rebound or expand back to its original volume when unpacked. This compression is especially noticeable after a prolonged shipping duration when subjected to the rolling movement onboard a ship. It often means that the quality of the product is not consistent throughout the consignment, which means that the overall performance is compromised.
Happily, there is a solution to this problem. You can source your meltblown spill control from a tried and tested manufacturer that is closer to home. FyterTech Nonwovens Ltd. is a UK manufacturer of meltblown absorbent pads and rolls. We’re based in Greater Manchester.
Liquid Safety Solutions by FyterTech Nonwovens is a global business and comprises of three distinct divisions: Spill Control, Filtration and Health & Hygiene. You might already be familiar with our Lubetech brand of absorbents and spill control products which were supplied to you under our previous name of NPS.
For our distribution partners this offers many advantages. Not only do you remove any unpredictable shipping and currency fluctuation problems at a stroke. You also remove import paperwork, having to hold large amounts of inventory, and resolve any compromised product quality issues.
Our well established meltblown absorbents line has been manufacturing absorbent pads and rolls since 2015. So, you can buy with confidence, reassured that it’s not a new facility with all the inherent ‘set up’ gremlins to resolve. And unlike some others, who might claim they manufacture meltblown in the UK but in reality, just import meltblown and re-package it – we do actually make it, and a lot of it!
Perhaps you’ve already experienced some of the problematical issues highlighted in this article. If you’d like to avoid most, if not all of these problems, then now is the perfect time to speak to one of our team. We can advise on our product range, delivery times, pricing, and how we can support your distribution business with our marketing support material. Contact us today and make shipping container shortages one less problem in your in-tray.