Sea freight from China to major global destinations typically takes 25-35 days for the US West Coast, 35-45 days for the US East Coast, 30-40 days for Northern Europe, and 20-30 days for the Middle East. These are transit times only and don't include loading, unloading, or customs clearance. Always add 7-14 days to the transit time when quoting delivery dates to your customers. Buffer time is not waste — it's risk management.
Container loading optimization can reduce your per-unit shipping cost by 5-15%. Key factors: product dimensions, packaging design, loading pattern, and container type. Mixed-size products often achieve higher container utilization than uniform boxes. Request a loading plan from your forwarder before finalizing packaging. Small changes in box dimensions can significantly improve container fit. This is free money — most importers leave it on the table.
Pre-shipment planning prevents half of all logistics problems. Confirm: correct HS code classification, complete shipping documents, proper packaging for the transport mode, correct labels and marks, insurance coverage, and destination country import requirements. A pre-shipment logistics checklist shared with your supplier and forwarder ensures nothing is forgotten. Good logistics is 80% preparation and 20% execution.