Written by Cecilia Devenyi, Tropical Shipping

A committed supply chain partner is essential to the rebuilding of hotels and other infrastructure on the islands following a natural disaster.  When life-sustaining supplies are delivered in the immediate aftermath of a storm, employees, workers and other businesses are able to get up and running; hotels reopen sooner and visitors return more quickly.  When hotels resupply and reopen promptly, the visitor experience is quickly reassured. The visitor perception of a resilient destination ready to overcome setbacks and rebuild to ever higher standards is cemented.

First and foremost, an experienced transportation partner with resources to bring cargo into port in the immediate aftermath of a storm is a given.  They must have a disaster preparedness and recovery protocol in place themselves, so that they may focus on your business and the recovery of your supply chain so that your hotel or resort can host visitors.  A partner who brings together public and private sectors to coordinate recovery plans before an event occurs so that business continuity is ensured after a disaster strikes equals resilience and recovery.

A committed partner whose transportation consultants can inform on the many tools available to make your supply chain more reliable leads to resilience.  Having essential cargo on hand can provide piece of mind.  Consolidation and warehousing allow for supplies to be ready for transport as soon as vessels can be safely loaded and allowed safe entry into a port of call.  Hoteliers maintain control over their cargo requirements by deciding what shipments will be consolidated and when they will sail. Full Container and Less than Container Load consolidation shipments can move directly from a consolidation warehouse to destination ports.  Consolidation saves individual documentation charges by combining several shipments on one Bill of Lading; this along with other saving measures can make quite an impact on reducing the costs of resupplying and rebuilding.

Additionally, we may find that some supplies may be scarce during an active hurricane season.  Relationships with alternate suppliers and transportation consultants ready to make the connections to get the cargo you need to where you need it can help you re-supply, recover and rebuild.

Have a logistics partner who is ready to assist when disaster strikes. Have a partner whose customer service representatives and transportation consultants are knowledgeable in all phases of logistics, of exportation, documentation, as well as, of all inland transportation options.

A disaster preparedness plan and a business continuity plan in place is of utmost importance to hoteliers in the Caribbean region.  A committed supply chain partner is a central piece of the plan.  To build resilience and learn more about disaster preparedness and how to rebuild better and stronger visit our website.