Shipping companies are numerous in Seattle because Seattle is a world-class shipping center. The Port of Seattle and the Port of Tacoma add an international flavor to what is already a very busy shipping community. There are many shipping companies in Seattle that will move your freight by land, air or sea. If you are anywhere in the northwestern part of the United States or southwestern part of Canada, Seattle might just be the shipping locale for your business.
International Shipping
With major commercial and international corporations located in the Seattle, Washington area, international shipping is a major enterprise. Ships come and go in the ports every day, bringing goods in and taking them out of the United States to and from other countries around the world. Trucks move the freight from the ports across the United States and Canada. Trains and airplanes are also major components of this international shipping hub. Wherever you need your goods to go, a Seattle shipping company can get them there.
International shipping companies in Seattle will let you send a partial container load by ocean freighter or an individual parcel by air anywhere in the world. Seattle’s experienced shipping companies will get you through the paperwork and regulations needed to export your freight wherever it needs to go and watch out for your budget at the same time.
When you choose your shipping company for international shipping make sure they are connected with agents of the Ocean Transportation Intermediary and the Federal Maritime Commissions, so you have the correct licenses in place. Your shipper should be able to provide an ocean house bill of lading.
There are a lot of international regulations and US regulations when considering shipping internationally. All wooden shipping containers must comply with certification regulations. Some Seattle companies are new to the world of international shipping, while others have been doing it for decades. Make sure the company you chose knows how to handle and prepare international shipments.
What to Expect from Seattle International Shipping Companies
As a potential customer, you have the right to expect certain things from any international shipping company in Seattle that you approach about your business. Some of the information they should be able to provide you would include:
- The cost of packing and shipping your freight internationally including meeting all regulations and providing all required documents.
- Inform you of what the declared value coverage of your shipment might look life based on your per shipment needs.
- Provide you with all the international forms and documents needed and manage this process for you.
- What services they can offer you – residential delivery, business delivery, port to port, door to port, door to door.
Some additional services that might be provided depending upon the shipping companies in Seattle that you choose to explore include:
- Letters of credit
- 20’ and 40’ containers
- Full carton load (FCL) and Less than full carton load (LCL)
- Trucking/Warehousing/Railroad/Air Shipments
- Boat and Car shipment
- Anything to do with either/both exporting and importing with respect to customs.
- Custom designed import/export program just for your business.
Whether it be international or domestic, you need to know you will get reliable service and on-time delivery. Find out if just-in-time delivery is possible. With the risk of international shipments by the ocean, it may not be available. Whatever you need to ship from or to Seattle choose a shipping company that can do it all.
Why Seattle?
Why should you bring your business to and from Seattle? Why would someone in North Dakota want to ship from Seattle? Why would someone in Toronto even consider Seattle as a shipping port?
Seattle is in and of itself full of exported products including farming, natural resources, fishing, construction materials, and consumer goods. The shipping companies in Seattle that engage in international trade are rich in experience from centuries of doing so.
Seattle has a great infrastructure with connections to Alaska, Canada, and the US in rail and roads. There is plenty of experience in the Air Cargo industry as well. There isn’t anything you want to ship or anywhere you want to ship it, that you won’t find a company in Seattle ready to help you at a really good price. With freight hubs at the Seattle-Tacoma Airport, the Union Pacific Railroad, the Olympic Pipeline, Interstates 5 and State Route 99, the Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railway and the Port of Seattle, your business will never be without a way out of or into Seattle.
With major corporations playing out of their Seattle headquarters the city must have the needed freight shipping options for both domestic and international trade. With five Fortune 500 companies having their headquarters in Seattle you can see how important this might be.
If Seattle can meet the domestic and international shipping needs of Starbucks, Expeditors of International of Washington, Amazon.com, Nordstrom and Alaska Air Group, they can meet yours as well.