Our client called us with an unusual request. He has been pursuing a client for months, trying to sell a South African product to a company in Australia who supplies equipment to the mining industry. Negotiations were unsuccessful last year, but he finally managed to get the right product at the right price. His client in Australia insisted on delivery by the 8th of August, but the manufacturer in South Africa still needed more time for manufacturing. We worked closely with our sister company, Red Nav in Perth, and looked at every possible scenario. Timing was of the essence. Unfortunately, most vessels required a transit time of about thirty days between the port of Durban, South Africa, and the port of Fremantle in Australia. The client was reluctant to request a later delivery date from the buyer, and it seemed possible that once again his negotiations were not going to be successful.
Then experience from the Sebenza/RedNav team kicked in! There was another option.
After a few calls we found a vessel which offered a direct sailing that only needed 16 days transit time. We looked at the estimated days of departure and arrival and knew that this was our solution! The manufacturer worked until the last possible moment before the trucking company pulled through his gates. The driver collected the goods at close of business and drove through the night to ensure that our cargo was handed in before the stacks were closed. The vessel departed as planned, and we enjoyed a mini celebration, but then … disaster struck! Inclement weather at sea caused the arrival date to be pushed out! The original arrival date was 2nd August, which became the 3rd, and then the 4th! As we kept a watchful eye on the weather report, a mini tornado hit the coastal city of Perth on the afternoon of the 4th August! Luckily it hit a few kilometres north of the port of Fremantle and it did delay the arrival time too much. The vessel eventually docked at 3am on the morning of the 6th August, giving us one day for the vessel to unpack. The cargo became available on the morning of 7th August, and we delivered one day earlier than the cut-off date. A relieved client waited at the delivery address of the buyer to welcome the first of what he (and we) hope to be many more shipments. We feel confident in the knowledge that we went over and above our duty to deliver the best possible sea freight service to our client at an affordable rate. This is what shipping is about.
