Expertise · Technology

Technology

Technology is perishable too. It does not spoil, but it loses value every week it spends in transit: a new model appears, the market price falls, the launch window closes.

And because of its value per kilo, it is the cargo that attracts theft the most. That is why in this sector the route is defined by risk and time, not by the rate.

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What sets this cargo apart

The value of the cargo rules over its weight.

A lot of value in little weight

A pallet of phones, computers or components can be worth as much as a whole container of other goods. That has two consequences that define the entire operation. The first is financial: freight weighs little against the value of the cargo. In furniture or materials, freight can be a significant part of the final cost; in electronics, it is almost always a minor fraction. That changes the calculation of which route makes sense. The second is security: anything that is worth a lot, weighs little and resells easily is a target for theft.

Value is lost with time

A piece of equipment that arrives a month late may arrive after the launch of the model that replaces it. A component that is delayed can stop an assembly line. A seasonal product that did not arrive by the sales date is liquidated at a discount. In this sector, transit time is measured in price.

Damage is not always visible

An electronic board damaged by humidity, electrostatic discharge or vibration can look intact when the box is opened and fail weeks later, when it has already been sold. It is the most expensive kind of damage, because it appears in the hands of the end customer and there is no one left to claim from.

The calculation that changes the choice of route

In technology, air is often the cheap decision.

In most sectors, air is used only when there is urgency, because the freight is several times more expensive. In technology that logic is often reversed.

Cargo in transit is tied-up capital. While the goods sail, you have paid for them but cannot sell them. With high-value cargo, the weeks of difference between ocean and air can represent a financial cost comparable to the difference in freight.

And freight is a small fraction of the value. A difference that would double the final cost in furniture can move the cost by only a few points in electronics. Add obsolescence, and air stops being a luxury for certain products: it is the cheap decision.

It is not always so. For volume, for products with a lower value per kilo or for scheduled replenishment, ocean remains the reasonable choice. What matters is to work out the complete calculation, not to compare rates alone.

When we choose each route

The criteria, not the procedure.

Ocean

For volume, consumer electronics at scale, accessories and equipment with lower value per kilo. And for anything with lithium batteries in quantities that air does not admit.

What decides it: whether the product withstands weeks without losing value, and whether the volume justifies a container.

What is underestimated: humidity. A container that crosses from a warm, humid climate to cold waters generates condensation on the roof, which drips onto the cargo. In coffee it ruins the bean; in electronics, it corrodes contacts and boards without it being noticed until the equipment fails. It is controlled with desiccants, moisture-barrier bags and an inner liner.

The risk of theft is concentrated in handovers and in waiting in the yard, not in the sailing. A well-sealed container with little handling is the best protection.

Air

For high-value products, dated launches, components that stop a line and anything that loses value quickly.

What decides it almost always is lithium batteries. The same product may or may not fly depending on how its batteries are packed: on their own, inside the equipment or alongside it. That decision is made by the supplier when assembling the packages, and it is best defined beforehand. See dangerous goods.

What protects the cargo: fewer transfer points. Every stopover is a handling and an exposure. A direct route with fewer connections can be worth more than a cheaper one with two transshipments.

Road

For the regional corridor and national distribution.

What decides it: security on the road. Road transport is where the risk of theft is greatest, because the cargo is exposed at stops, parking areas and driver rest breaks.

What is coordinated: routes and schedules with less exposure, planned stops at safe places and, for high-value cargo, satellite tracking of the vehicle.

How a cargo that attracts theft is protected

Four measures, from the simplest to the finest.

Nobody should know what it is

It is the simplest measure and the most ignored. The outer packaging must not carry the brand or the image of the product. A master carton with the logo of a phone manufacturer announces its contents to every person who handles it along the chain. Neutral, unbranded cartons, identified only by code.

The same goes for documentation that travels in plain sight: the detailed commercial description goes in the documents that need it, not stuck on the package.

It should be touched as little as possible

Every handover is an opportunity. Containers or pallets that are not opened between origin and destination, routes with fewer transshipments, warehouses where the cargo is not left exposed.

Any opening should be noticeable

Numbered seals, verified and recorded at every handover. When a package arrives with a broken seal or a different number, it is known exactly on which leg it happened.

That traceability is also what supports the insurance claim. Without it, a shortage is a discussion without evidence.

Inventory should be controlled by serial number

For valuable equipment, counting packages is not enough. Serial-number control makes it possible to detect substitutions —a box that arrives complete but with a different unit from the one that left—, manage warranties and trace a piece if it turns up somewhere else.

Damage that cannot be seen

Three causes that are prevented in the packaging, not afterward.

Electrostatic discharge. Loose electronic components —boards, chips, modules— are damaged by a discharge that is not even perceptible. They travel in antistatic bags, and that protection cannot be opened for inspection without the appropriate precautions.
Humidity. It corrodes contacts and circuits progressively. The equipment works on arrival and fails months later.
Vibration and shocks. In equipment with moving parts or sensitive components, damage from continuous vibration is similar to what we describe for medical equipment: it is not visible, but it miscalibrates or loosens connections. See medical equipment.

All three are prevented in the packaging, before loading. Afterward, there is no way to reverse them.

Before committing

What we check first.

Does it contain lithium batteries, and how are they packed? It defines whether it can fly and with what documentation.
Does it require certification to be sold in Chile? Electrical equipment and equipment that emits radio frequency need it, and certification is usually per model. The first shipment of a new model is the one that gets complicated. See trade compliance.
What is it worth and what happens if it is delayed? To work out the complete comparison between ocean and air.
Does the outer packaging identify the product? If it carries a visible brand, it is worth asking for neutral cartons before the supplier assembles the shipment.
Are they components sensitive to electrostatic discharge? If so, antistatic packaging has to come from origin.
What insurance does it carry and on what value? For high-value cargo, the general policy usually has limits that do not cover a complete shipment.

Next step

Are you bringing in high-value equipment or components?

Send us the product, the approximate value and the date you need it. We work out the complete comparison between routes, not just the freight, and tell you what needs to be resolved in the packaging before it leaves.

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