COOKEVILLE, Tenn. (July 13, 2004) – Averitt Express, one of the nation’s leading freight transportation and supply chain management providers, has announced its Memphis, TN service center has met U.S. Customs requirements to operate as a bonded Container Freight Station (CFS).

A Container Freight Station is a freight terminal approved by U.S. Customs for temporary storage of imported goods until goods clear customs.

This new authorization benefits Averitt’s import customers by improving potential handling costs and transit times of the importing process. Under the typical importing scenario, imported freight is held at a bonded facility, usually a warehouse, until it clears customs. A transportation provider then retrieves the freight from the warehouse to deliver it to its final destination.

By meeting requirements to operate as a bonded CFS, Averitt’s Memphis location can hold freight awaiting customs clearance in place of a warehouse. Since Averitt also serves as a transportation provider, when the goods clear customs, the freight is readily available at its service center for immediate distribution.

This process eliminates a trek to a separate warehouse facility to retrieve it, which, in turn, aids in reducing the time it takes to deliver the goods to their final destination. With Averitt’s ability to handle imports in this manner, freight is shuffled through fewer processors, which can result in decreased damages, lower overall costs, and quicker final delivery.

“It’s rare for a common carrier to operate a facility as a bonded Container Freight Station,” said Ernie Valdez, Director of Averitt’s International Services. “By providing the services of a bonded CFS, we’re able to offer customers greater flexibility in handling their imported freight by bringing it directly into our system.”

Averitt’s Memphis facility, located at 4250 Air Trans Road, was the first in Averitt’s network to obtain certification. In addition to being a major rail-head and deconsolidation facility, Memphis is a major import city from the Far East .

About Averitt Express

Established in 1971, Averitt Express is a leading provider of freight transportation and supply chain management services with international reach to over 100 countries. The company specializes in delivering customized solutions with a single source of accountability for service offerings that include less-than-truckload, truckload, dedicated, time-critical, international ocean and airfreight, and supply chain management. Backed by successful execution for hundreds of customers, Averitt’s supply chain capabilities include consolidation, distribution, warehousing, port management, transportation network design, and complete transportation management. For more information, call 1-800-AVERITT or visit www.averittexpress.com.

Contacts:  
 
Brad Brown
Marketing and Communications Leader
Averitt Express 
(931) 525-5398
bbrown@averittexpress.com