The Association of American Railroads has recently published its newest version of the AAR Railway Accounting Rules. Keep your company current on the most recent changes. To download a copy, please visit railinc.com.
CSX projects increases in rail pricing; with increased rail rates, a freight audit is more valuable than ever: More freight dollars spent means more possible dollars in billing errors, and when changes are made to tariffs or contracts there is more margin for error when the new rates are published.
Bloomberg.com has the full article.
10News in Tampa Bay reports that the NTSB, the National Transportation Safety Board, has released its list for most wanted improvements for 2015.
Increased regulation could worsen the current driver shortage, impact service times, and affect shipping costs. With less drivers available to move freight, shippers are looking for ways to continue to get shipments to customers on time. Less drivers can mean longer transit times or less frequent pickups by carriers. Safety affects everyone; the costs related to an accident can be passed along to the customer in the form of higher rates.
Cerasis.com reports on some ways to improve your inbound freight management.
As a manufacturer, you will most likely be involved in inbound freight movements. That puts a lot of pressure on you and maybe even your freight costs. Having a discussion with you vendor and/or carriers can provide opportunity for understanding how your freight is moving and how it is costing you. This conversation could be well worth the time and money.
An Audit by AMTR’s team of professionals can produce valuable information to support you in these conversations with your carriers as well as recover any overcharges that may exist at the same time. It is a win-win situation.
A Logistics Management article from early this month reported on the decline of diesel fuel prices – at the lowest it has been since November of 2010.
Prices have been on a steep decline since the end of October. This is a positive for shippers as the cost of FSC, or Fuel Surcharge, on their invoices are declining. As the cost of fuel decreases, the possibility of incorrect FSC assessment increases. With a combination of trained auditors and AMTR’s proprietary IT tools, we are able to catch any FSC billing errors.
According to the Soy Transportation Coalition (as reported by the Ohio Country Journal), Union Pacific is the best rail shipper in the grain industry, rated by on-time performance, customer service and cost. If a choice of carrier is available, it is important to know which company provides the highest levels of service. AMTR keeps abreast of these trends to keep you informed.
The Wall Street Journal reports on a shortage of rail cars, impacting a multitude of industries.
Railcar shortages are forcing railroads to lease from private industries and vice versa, is your company paying correctly for your shipments?
Only the experts at AMTR can help make sense of these trends and ensure you are paying the correct rates.
For LTL (Less than Truckload) shipping, billing is determined by a few key factors, including the classification of the product(s) shipped. The classifications and the associated classes can be found in the National Motor Freight Classification book. The current version is NMF 100-AN and is set to expire 2/7/15. All of the supplements published over the last year will be integrated into the new version, NMF 100-AO effective 2/8/15.
With the many changes that will take effect, and the fact that rate clerks are not experienced in the research and classifying of products, many overcharge errors will occur. AMTR’s trained auditors can ensure that the right classification is being applied for your products and that you are not being overbilled.
