Inside Track: How a Freight Forwarder Pulls Off the “Impossible”

At Canaan, we are proud of the work we do to help our clients with the “regular” tasks of ensuring their shipments arrive on time. We also love taking on the challenging, unexpected assignments that allow our expertise and dedication to truly shine.

Among the services we provide, air freight perhaps best represents Canaan’s ability to react and adapt quickly, as cargo shipped by air is often incredibly time-sensitive. Our air freight team is available 24 hours a day to ensure a job gets done right.

A recent example:

A client needed help with an urgent air shipment to Oregon from China — normally a straightforward job, but in this circumstance, the size and timing of the shipment required special troubleshooting.

The shipment involved transporting 12 pallets of urgently needed machinery, weighing a total of 4,000 kg, to avert a potential line down situation for their client. Additionally, this needed to get from one region in China to Shanghai for export before operations shut down for the biggest holiday of the year: the Lunar New Year (Spring Festival). A crucial first tactic was splitting the shipment into two parts to make it more manageable and to create more shipping options.

As an IATA member since 1988, and with four decades of relationship building across various industries and in different countries, Canaan has the ability to procure space, liaise with airlines, and provide consistent delivery times even in peak seasons. We are proud of our Canadian roots and also of our international expertise; we have first-hand knowledge of airport capacity across North America, and particularly in the Pacific Northwest. Our expertise allows us to problem-solve quickly, without needing to wait for explanations from outside parties.

All of this informed our decision to arrange air freight to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SeaTac) instead of Portland, due to the latter’s limited availability of widebody international flights. This decision helped with both cost-effectiveness and scheduling — with more flights available to SeaTac, there was a higher likelihood of the freight not being bumped or delayed due to high passenger aircraft occupancy.

The first shipment of 7 pallets arrived first, followed by the 5-pallet shipment a couple of days later. To minimize costs, we arranged for the trucker to hold onto the 7-pallet shipment until the 5 pallets were picked up as well. This strategic move allowed for all 12 pallets to be delivered together to the consignee’s door at a reasonable cost, successfully averting the line down situation.

We are confident that our customer service is unmatched among logistics companies based in Western Canada, in air freight and across all our services. This dedication to delivering as promised has earned us a loyal client base, for which we are grateful. These strong, lasting relationships motivate us in achieving the “impossible” for our clients, whether it be obtaining protective equipment during a pandemic or shipping urgently needed equipment at the busiest time of the year to keep operations running. If you are in need of assistance, please reach out to us today: sales@canaangroup.ca