ALASKA LOGISTICS
Span Alaska also offers barge services to and from Southeast Alaska, as well as Central and Western Alaska. While a longer transit, it’s a cost-effective option for breakbulk, oversize shipments, and containers of all sizes: 20, 40, 45, and 53 feet. The company also offers southbound shipping from Dutch Harbor, Kodiak, and Anchorage to the Port of Tacoma once weekly. For shippers whose packages need to move past Tacoma, Span Alaska can transport them via truck or rail to any location across the lower 48 states and Canada. While most Span Alaska shipments travel via a combination of ocean and road, the company also leverages air transport, often when time is critical. It also turns to rail service, typically when transporting shipments that are heavier and dif cult to move over the road. “No matter what, we get our customers’ freight where it needs to go,” Johnson says. Because of its expertise, Span Alaska can offer customers a streamlined, user- friendly experience. “It’s seamless from the time you give us a shipment until it’s delivered,” Johnson says. “And that’s both the physical movement of the shipment and virtual monitoring, providing instant tracking and all of the documentation that accompanies every move.” Along with its equipment and technology, Span Alaska’s employees are critical to the company’s ongoing, reliable ability to move shipments in Alaska’s often punishing terrain and extreme weather. “All of us take pride in solving challenges and being part of the supply chain that enables life in Alaska to be very much like it is anywhere else,” Johnson says. “It’s purposeful work.” TOTE Maritime Alaska Focused on the Customer Experience A quality customer experience is one of TOTE Maritime Alaska’s core values, says Art Dahlin, vice president and Alaska general manager. TOTE’s ships move about one-third of goods heading to Alaska’s Rail Belt Region, which
TOTE Maritime Alaska leverages decades of experience in Alaska to provide industry-leading transit times. It continues to innovate, with customer portal upgrades and a nearly completed project to convert its ship fleet to run on liquefied natural gas.
TOTE also can adeptly handle military moves across the Gulf of Alaska, including weekly Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) shipments, cold-weather training cargo, and brigade- sized and division-level moves. “We assemble a project team and work closely with stakeholders to make sure we have a safe solution,” Dahlin says. SP D, SAFETY, RELIABILITY Through its eet of roll-on/roll-off (RO/RO) cargo ships, TOTE offers speed, safety, and reliability. “If it rolls, our ships can accommodate it,” Dahlin says. Once the ships are docked, shipments can be unloaded and on store shelves within two hours. “All our equipment is designed to quickly turn cargo in and out of the ports,” Dahlin says. To ensure the entire state can access the supply chain, TOTE Maritime Alaska works closely with transportation partners, including line haul trucks going to Fairbanks and air freight to reach the outer villages. “It’s pretty impressive to see the whole supply chain work together as well as it does,” Dahlin says. “Alaska is an incredibly beautiful and unique place and we’re proud to have served the state for nearly 50 years.” n
runs approximately from Seward up to Fairbanks. The vessels have been built to meet “ice class” speci cations, and their four engines and two propellers, among other features, allow them to ef ciently move cargo where it needs to go. “These ships were built to serve the people and communities of Alaska, reliably and ef ciently no matter the circumstances,” says Dahlin. Even as TOTE leverages the experience it has gained over its nearly ve decades of working in Alaska, management continues to innovate. TOTE is in the nal phases of converting its eet to run on lique ed natural gas (LNG). “It is an historic project,” Dahlin says. “Once complete, our entire eet will run on LNG.” TOTE is also investing in its customer portal, working with customers to re ne it and make sure it’s adding the value they want. “We’re engaged in a process of continuous improvement,” Dahlin says. With decades of experience in Alaska, TOTE can call on its expertise to guide its twice-weekly service between Tacoma, Washington and Anchorage. Transit times and port turn times are industry- leading, with drivers often moving through the gate and returning to the road in less than 20 minutes.
44 Inbound Logistics • April 2023
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