Chilling Observations on Halloween

Okay, I lied. This article has nothing to do with Halloween. I wrote the misleading title and jacked a deceptive picture to get you to click open and read the Halloween chilling details. You never would have opened an article about refrigerated freight and you know it. Don’t take it so hard. So I deceived you. Now that you’re here, what the heck, read a little on refrigerated freight. It won’t hurt you.

Not long ago I was asked by a customer to help one of their customers. It seems their customer trucked chilled, and some frozen, meat shipments and wanted to reduce their shipping risk. The customer knew every small detail of the product they shipped, but were unsure of their savvy when it came to the transport of their refrigerated freight. Below is the paper I wrote as a list of talking points to be covered in our meeting. It turned out to be eleven of points to consider when trucking refrigerated freight. I tried to peel it to ten because it sounded better, but I couldn’t decide which item to discard. In no way is this writing comprehensive in nature or intent.

01.Stick with well-established NPLA (National Perishable Logistics Association)/RTF (Refrigerated Transportation Foundation) certified refrigerated carriers with modern fleets. NPLA/RTF certified refrigeration and insulation rating plates can be found at the front of the trailer letting you know if the equipment fits your cargo refrigeration specifications. Ideally each transportation company has fully digitized equipment which can download data remotely from almost any location. Choosing carriers with strong ties to refrigerated storage facilities would be a plus in the event your inventory needs to be transferred quickly due to mechanical breakdown.

02. If you choose to utilize a freight broker, set specific standards for carriers that will be used to haul your product. Items such as number of units, safety history, average age of fleet, and years in business can all be considered. Make it no secret (written agreement required) the broker will hold liability if the broker hires a carrier of below acceptable set standards to haul your product and the carrier experiences a loss.

03.Strive to form a partnership with your carriers. Ask for extra ‘STS’ due diligence from drivers accepting loads from shippers. Along with a temperature test, the driver should use three of their five senses for every load they sign for.

Sight should be used to look at the freight. The freight should appear to be packaged well, not be wet, and have good color if applicable.

Touch* should be used to judge the temperature of the freight when loaded or shortly after. Walking into the trailer and laying a hand on packaged protected areas of the shipment will tell the driver immediately if the shipment is warm.

Smell should be used to assess if the freight as any unusual odor. Decay, bleach, fuel, or chemicals will all jump right out at the driver. As with all freight, the driver should note the bill of lading or refuse the load depending on the situation.

04. To reduce risk of loss due to theft risk, limit transit to daylight hours while in high risk regions and require the loaded trailer not be left unattended in an unsecured area.

05. Even though this is number five on the list, it can be considered it number one. Temperature monitoring devices should be utilized for every truck load. Today’s devices are not only inexpensive; they can monitor and record temperature variations as well as what day and time they occurred. This data is vital in the event of a temperature related loss as well as key in focusing on the continuing improvement of your process.

06. Despite the best efforts of truckload, partial truckload and LTL transportation companies that haul refrigerated freight, opening the trailer doors at each stop is a reality when hauling freight and more with less than truck load. These ‘door open’ times can impact the internal temperature of the trailer. Whether truckload or less than truck load, the ambient temperature outside the trailer along with the length of time the trailer is open can be your freight’s enemy. Even though most drivers know their business well, have set guidelines in place for how long trailer doors can be kept open in non-temperature controlled environments. If your freight is warmed, it may take a while (too long) to bring it back to acceptable temperature. Also note, even though many refrigeration units employ automatic deicing of the coils, it is not implausible that leaving doors open too long with the refrigeration unit running may cause unnoticed icing on coils blocking refrigerated air circulation during transport.

07. Know your shipper/vendor better than they know you. Your vendor may not always be the actual shipper. Make it a point to know the violation history of your vendor as well as all of their possible shippers. It will give you the chance to exclude shippers with questionable violation histories from being utilized to supply your inventory.

08. Partner with your vendor and their shippers in an effort to have a trailer inspection process in place for each load picked up. Many shippers will already have trailer inspection guidelines; ensure they are being actively carried out. It only takes a moment for a team member to scan the truck they are loading for the following:

Is the trailer free of dirt and trash?

Is there any standing water on the trailer floor?

Is there any evidence of bug or rodent activity?

Are there any unusual odors which can include decaying matter, fuel fumes, or insecticides?

Are there holes, punctures, missing/damaged door seals or, damaged internal air circulation Vents seen on the interior of the trailer?

Are the floor grooves/channels of the trailer packed with debris?

Is the trailer unusually warm on the inside?

If the answer can be ‘yes’ to any one of these questions the trailer should not be loaded until the incident is investigated and corrected if possible. The same questions should be asked upon receiving the freight and the bill of lading should be duly noted with any incidence out of the ordinary. Keep in mind a bill of lading notation that turns into nothing, is just that, nothing. Although a bill of lading with no notation when there is a loss experienced can mean everything.

09. All shippers should ensure both the trailer** as well as the freight be pre-cooled prior to loading. In the event the freight is not pre-cooled well, trailer cool down periods are too long to prevent many perishable inventory from degrading. Remember, refrigerated trucks are designed to maintain temperatures rather than changing (lowering) temperatures. Pre-cooling of the freight is especially important with meat shipments. Since many meat shipments are often packaged to prevent contamination, the very same packaging that protects from contamination acts as insulation to the meat. This insulation prevents the refrigerated trailer from reducing the internal temperature of the loaded product.

10. Confusion and miscommunication between freight owners, 3 party transportation companies, shippers, and transport companies result in a significant number of claims. Ensure all temperature and humidity specifications for your freight are provided to each 3 party provider, shipper, and truck in writing for every shipment. Clearly define all specifications to include whether temperature is stated in Centigrade or Fahrenheit, whether the fresh air vent settings are cubic feet per minute or cubic meter per hour. Also, never allow the vent setting to be stated in percentages such as ‘25% open’.

11. When loading keep in mind refrigeration units are designed to circulate chilled air around your freight intercepting warm radiant heat from the walls and floor of the trailer. Depending on whether the trailer is an iced load, bottom air delivery refrigeration unit, or a top air delivery refrigeration unit, will dictate the method of loading. For this writing I am addressing only refrigeration unit trailers. Stacking freight on the floor or against walls diminishes the trailer’s abilities to keep all of the freight at proper temperature. Since items such as meat have no respiration heat generation each package should be stacked tight to each other but not against the walls or directly on the floor. Many fresh fruits and vegetables produce respiration heat and must be loaded with more ventilation surface in mind and most often have holes in the packaging to allow full product ventilation. Always check the recommended loading specifications for your particular commodity. The trailer floor should be deep grooved and free of debris utilizing pallets or floor racks to maintain air flow to the bottom of the packaging. When unloading the trailer make note of the manner the freight was loaded by the shipper. If inventory stacked on the floor, past the height limit marked in the trailer, or against walls blocking the flow of chilled air from moving around all of the freight, duly note the bill of lading, carefully inspect the freight, and notify the shipper of loading standards and procedure required to receive further shipments.

There, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Face it; if you read this far you were at least mildly interested. My intent is not to have the eleven line-items used as a soul guide for shipping. My intent is to highlight there is no ‘simpler than it seems’ commodity specification, especially in refrigerated freight.

Keep in mind for some guidelines there is often an asterisk changing the guideline somehow for some reason. Can apples stow with onions? It’s just not as simple as some would try and lead you to believe. There is no doubt those in the refrigerated freight segment of the industry can get the above list and turn it into a small book with better facts. These are the folks to turn to when you are unsure about shipping your refrigerated freight. Okay admit it, it was a chilling article, wasn't it?

*Ideally the driver should employ a temperature probe to test sample cartons or pallets upon loading.

** Take note trailers should not be pre-cooled if not loading in at a temperature controlled loading area. Pre-cooling the trailer and loading in a non-temperature controlled area can result in excessive moisture ingress into the trailer. When loading in a non-temperature controlled area the pre-cooled freight should be quickly loaded and the refrigeration unit should be started immediately upon the trailer doors being closed.