TT Club, in a conjoined effort with BSI, released their 2021 Cargo Theft Report, indicating 2020’s yearly recap of cargo theft trends and statistics across the globe. Here’s an overview of its findings:
*71% of cargo thefts occurred during transit, a 16% decrease from the year before but beyond doubt, still the number on type of cargo theft. In North America (the US, Canada and Mexico), in-transit thefts hit 74%.
*Storage facilities made up 25% of thefts, an increase YOY, partially due to overflow effects from the COVID crisis and a decrease in security efforts.
*Food and beverages remained the number one type of stolen product, accounting for 31% of all thefts.
*New high-value targets took a spotlight due to the coronavirus outbreak including hand sanitizer, PPE, and face masks. (1)
CargoNet’s 2020 recap throughout the US and Canada noted a 16% increase in cargo thefts over 2019 with a 19% uptick in the average theft value, $166,334. (2)
2021 is expected to be just as difficult as we continue battling and recovering from COVID-19. As BIS and TT Club’s report note, “In the coming year, disruption and the uneven resumption of international trade resulting from the spread of COVID will continue with imbalances in shipping container distribution that are likely to impact maritime, and through a knock-on effect air cargo capacity throughout 2021. The added vulnerability of cargo will therefore continue.” (3)
Fortunately, as the report notes, no thefts of the COVID-19 vaccine have been reported yet; however, one can only imagine what would happen if the vaccines were stolen and tampered with, counterfeited, sold on the black market, and injected into the arms of millions…another important reason to increase cargo security measures and properly vet out carriers.
Road Scholar Transport does business with a multitude of pharmaceutical companies. As a recognized asset-based carrier on the east coast, we offer less-than-truckload (LTL), truckload (TL), dry van, frozen and reefer, heated, teams, expedited, and same-day service options. These various features allow us to provide services to all facets of the pharmaceutical industry, from raw materials to finished goods inventory.
Road Scholar Transport strongly focuses on the temperature-controlled business and the security of your manufactured goods to deliver a safe product to your end user, the way it left. Here are a few ways how:
Weekend Delivery Service
Has your cargo ever sat due to a long holiday weekend? Have you ever called a carrier to pick up an urgent load on a Friday only to have it docked until Monday? It is statistically proven that cargo at rest is cargo at risk with the greatest number of cargo thefts occurring on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Unlike many of our regional competitors who will not pick up protect from freezing shipments on a Friday because they do not want to be responsible for protecting it throughout the weekend, we have a protect from freezing policy that allows us to pick up and deliver five days a week. We at Road Scholar think that a competent supplier should be able to provide 100% protect coverage and not the conventional 80% (Mon-Thur.). Road Scholar Transport offers weekend delivery service for our customers, getting their product delivered quickly and reducing cargo theft.
Expedited Service
Road Scholar offers 24-hour expedited and same day service throughout our core service areas for those time-critical situations.
No Transfers
We cut back on the handling of your products by offering dock-to-dock service with NO transfers. You can be assured that everything picking up on our equipment, delivers on our equipment.
Qualified Drivers
We hire only the most professional and experienced drivers who are subject to background checks and safety tests well beyond the industry standard. Each of our drivers are uniformed and constantly trained on the latest cargo transport threats. We also undergo ten year criminal history background check of drivers and fingerprinting for Federal Security Threat Assessment.
Sanitary Equipment
While wooden pallets serve as a means of cross-contamination, being very porous, and therefore, absorbing and maintaining fluids that can breed bacteria as well as contain splinters and nails from the wood that can puncture products, wooden floor trailers similarly pose a concern. We take extra precaution to ensure that your cargo is being transported in a clean environment, providing aluminum floor trailers and conducting regular sweeps, preventing cross-contamination and creating a more sanitary environment.
Knowledgeable Dispatch Team
Freight can easily be damaged by unplanned routes that send trucks into areas not suitable for its size equipment. Our around the clock dispatch and operations team carefully plans all routes, including secure route geofencing around Road Scholar facilities and customer facilities (upon request).
Security
Cargo theft costs the trucking and shipping industry nearly $30 billion a year. Road Scholar implements only the toughest security features to our fleet, protecting your products from being damaged and tampered with. Road Scholar Transport’s Self-Created “Pentagon Distribution Model” provides 100% accountable secure transport by focusing on technology, visibility, protocols, equipment, and audit trailers. Security features include:
*Real-time satellite tracking right down to the breadcrumbs.
*Drivers, trailers, and power units are all equipped with redundant GPS tracking.
*Electronic door monitoring.
*Navalock (Bolt cutter, sledgehammer, and chisel proof. U.S. Customs and test labs have certified the Navalock against every possible in-transit threat of surreptitious removal or entry)
*Babaco TRUK LOC V (Tamper and weather proof. Permanently installed on vehicle.)
*Secure route optimization to avoid high risk areas.
*Proof-of- Delivery with Route Verification.
These are just some of the reasons that we NEVER suffered a full truckload loss.
Quality
*Platinum Pharmaceutical CSR assigned to your account
*Average Tractor Age < 3 years
*Pre-appointed shipments
*SmartWay Transport Partner
*Dedicated vehicles/equipment upon request
*All vehicles are air-ride equipped
*In cab scanners to make documentation immediately available
*Driver behavior events are recorded, including hard breaking incidents, idling, excessive speed, rapid acceleration/deceleration
*Full compliance of ELD mandate
*Drive Cams
*Wingman Collision Avoidance Systems
*Anti-Rollover Protection
*Roof Decals
*We’ve never been cited for a piece of faulty equipment involved in an accident
Road Scholar Transport’s Detailed Standard Operating and High Security Protocols are detailed within our Quality Program documentation.
Temperature Protect
*State-of-the-art reefers and power units that won’t break down, implemented with StarTrak telematic solutions to provide GPS tracking and real-time monitoring of reefer status including operating state, temperatures, alarms, battery condition, door events, and two-way control functionality to turn the reefer on/off and change reefer temperature set-point.
*We DO NOT blanket wrap. Our reefers are imbedded with technology that tracks the temperature within and alerts our team in the event that the temperature goes out of range so that we can rectify the situation prior to the product losing its integrity.
*Audit trail of the trailer temperature throughout the entire transportation process available upon request, giving you and your customer piece of mind that your products maintained the proper quality and security from point A to point B.
*Before a single tender is accepted our reefer fleet has already been validated with 24 hour thermal mapping certified by 3rd party Sensitech.
*Our customer service team verifies customer requirements. Maintenance is notified to begin preparing equipment.
*Drivers must do a 2nd test of the reefer, verify the temperature via in cab technology on pickup, and report temperature back to operations after first 30 minutes.
*Telematics feeds back continuous temperature readings. Alerts are generated and are handled immediately, even a remote temp reset.
It is important to know that your freight is being transported by a reputable carrier and qualified drivers who are background checked and properly trained, like Road Scholar Transport. Whether it is pharmaceutical transport, hazmat/chemical shipping, temperature controlled, or high risk products, we have the technology and security you need to protect your products during transport. Contact us today for a rate quote.
Download BSI and TT Club Cargo Theft Report 2021
(2)https://www.ttnews.com/articles/fleets-fight-increase-cargo-theft-high-and-low-tech-solutions
