Company Update – July 2021 – Global Shipping Crisis is real
Unfortunately, shipping supply chain constraints and component shortages have severely impacted our business. The delays, often with little notice, have caused a backlog of orders completely outside our control affecting the supply of imported Centurion Tables and locally manufactured Athlegen and Forme Medical products.
We expect these issues to be resolved mid-late September, unfortunately extending lead times for many existing orders to mid-August and new orders to early October.
To further exacerbate this supply problem, sales in all our major product categories are experiencing unprecedented growth ahead of last year. If it were not for the supply delays, this would be a good problem to have!
We would like to share some recent commentary from the CEO of our freight logistics company on the shipping issues that continue into this next financial year –
As we now plan for the start of 2022 year and the end of the calendar year which is traditionally “peak season” shipping, we note supply chain challenges will continue to hamper logistics flow with no quantifiable end in sight. The next few months will be increasingly chaotic for everyone, space constraints on ships will grow, Ocean & Air freight rates are continually increasing to unprecedented levels, in addition untimely MUA action has reared its ugly head again potentially causing backlogs, delays and congestion at certain ports. The ongoing unpredictability of Covid-19 only suggests that these disruptions will continue to affect the supply chain.
We are seeing conditions worsen in the US and Asia due to the high demand for products with shipment delays and bookings being rolled for a vast majority of sailings. The most pressing issue is equipment (containers of all kinds) shortages in the US and certain ports in China, subsequently an imbalance in countries such as Australia where demand for imports far outweighs export volume.
We urge you to continue increasing your inventory and lead times as manufacturers of raw materials face the same fate with delays. No doubt a level of patience and perseverance will be required as we head into the coming “peak” shipping period.
At Alevo, we are committed to improving customer communications and are proactively pursuing alternative supplier arrangements and suppliers to minimize the impact on our customers.
Although this information is accurate at the time of writing, because this is an in flux global situation and very much affected by the Covid pandemic, we will keep you updated if further delays impact us.
If you would like to discuss this article further, please call me directly on 02 9561 0105 or email me at jen@athlegen.com
Stay Safe
Jen Gander
National Sales and Business Development Manager
