UPS broadens multimodal express service between China and Europe

UPS announced today the addition of a Full Container Load (FCL) rail solution to its China-to-Europe transportation lineup. The move is the latest in a series of expansions of UPS’s worldwide forwarding services designed to offer customers more choices for shipping. “Our customers are looking to UPS for solutions that help them better manage their inventory and reach new markets while balancing the costs of doing business,” said Jens Poggensee, vice president for Freight Forwarding, UPS Europe. “We are excited to add a rail solution for our European customers to complement our existing ocean and air freight and package capabilities in one of the world’s largest freight lanes. Customers can now enjoy access to a broader transportation portfolio to better meet their business needs.”

The rail service is available on two distinct routes, operating from Chengdu, China, to Lodz, Poland, and from Zhengzhou, China, to Hamburg, Germany. Combining the rail movement with UPS’s existing integrated freight and truck networks, the service is up to 50 percent faster than ocean freight and enables cost savings of up to 70 percent when compared to air freight, with UPS technology providing end-to-end visibility and tracking.

The new rail service is well-timed to meet the needs of customers looking to balance supply chains. According to a recent Seabury survey, 71 percent of customers expect a moderate to strong shift to lower cost modes in the next 1-3 years.

The rail solution is offered to customers on a contractual basis, and follows several enhancements in 2013 to UPS’s multimodal portfolio of services in Europe, including the expansion of UPS Preferred™ Less-Than-Container Load (LCL) ocean freight service from Asia to Mexico and from Europe to the U.S. and Canada, and the introduction of UPS Worldwide Express Freight™ service for urgent, time-sensitive heavyweight shipments.