One of the most important things when it comes to shipping temperature sensitive products is finding the right solution to keep those products at the optimal temperature. Different products will have different ranges for the ideal temperature, and what may work well for vaccines or medication may not be appropriate for specific types of alcoholic beverages like wine.
This is why it’s important to have a clear idea of your shipping requirements when thinking about shipping temperature sensitive products. Two of the most important factors to consider involve volume, but that volume is factored in two different ways.
Shipping Volume
The first factor to consider when shipping temperature-sensitive products is the most straightforward, and that is your shipping volume. This is exactly what most people would expect and refers to the total number of products that you are actually sending off. In general, high shipping volume is considered to be a business that regularly sends out 1000 or more units of product. If a high volume of shipping occurs, this will necessitate a certain kind of temperature protection, such as liners for the entire shipping container or tractor-trailer. This is more cost-effective because if large amounts are being shipped, temperature protection that covers the whole shipping container protects every item.
Low volume is under 1000, or 1000 or more that is shipped only occasionally. There are other solutions for this.
SKU Volume
The next factor for businesses to consider is not just the raw numbers of products shipped but also the variety or category of products shipped. An item is assigned an identifying number for logistics, inventory, and administrative purposes referred to as a “stock keeping unit,” or SKU for short. For example, if a business ships out 2000 bottles of the same medication, it would ship only one SKU.
However, if a business ships several different kinds of wines, each wine product would have its own SKU to ensure each brand is properly organized, sorted, and shipped. This also presents specific shipping considerations. Beverages and pharmaceuticals, for example, may have different ideal shipping temperatures or be shipped in smaller batches. It may not be cost-effective to use insulated pallets, so something else, like box liners, may be more appropriate. It’s crucial to keep these factors in mind as you plan out your shipping strategy.
If you’re shipping temperature sensitive products and want to know the best way to get those products to their destination safely, we can help. Contact us to explain your shipping needs and obtain a quote.
