Go into almost any restaurant, grocery store or retail chain and you’re bound to see empty spaces on the shelves or a sign asking for patience as they are out of “fill in the blank”. Supply Chain Issues. There are plenty of reasons for the strain on the system. From port delays and storage issues to rail capacity and trucker shortages – these are not the market trends we want. Everyone is feeling the pressure to get raw materials to factories and finished products to consumers.

So how do you protect yourself during this uncertain market? You diversify you transportation methods. With bottlenecks at ports as shippers wait for trucks to unload their goods, it is time to look to the inland river system.

One barge can hold 72 TEUs. A 15-barge tow can carry the same amount as 1,050 trucks and the same as 216 rail cars + 6 locomotives. Freight movements on highways and rail systems are approaching max capacity without significant investment in infrastructure. In the meantime, the inland waterway system is operating under capacity and could easily double current freight tonnage with minimal investment.

What’s Barge Plus?
Ingram Logistics Services is in the unique position to utilize our sizable barge fleet with adjacent services to offer our customers Barge Plus. The “Plus” includes road trucking, import customs brokerage, international transport, warehousing and more.

After a review of your supply chain needs, ILS will develop a customized approach to get your cargo where it needs to go. This could mean using one of the following solutions, a combination of these solutions or one of the many other options we have available.

• Container on Barge – moving international/domestic containers along the US Inland waterways (Ingram Maritime-Modal) as a part of an end-to-end transportation program.
• Bulk Services – Non-containerized commodities handled with specialized equipment and services to meet the needs of the customer.
• Project Logistics – Providing transport for large, oversized products and equipment utilizing our existing barging footprint.

Even with inflation, consumers are still buying and building. You need reliable supply chain solutions to keep your cargo moving. Ingram Logistics can offer you a one-stop shop to handle your supply chain with ease. Contact Ingram Logistics today to find out how we can help.