If you haven’t heard, there are thousands of cargo ships just waiting off the coast of the U.S.A. to be unloaded and delivered to stores and homes. They contain cargo from all over the world. This includes locations where the majority of computer components and microchips are created. While normally, this is no big deal, and supplies get to consumers relatively quickly, these shipping bottlenecks have caused some big challenges for the tech industry. Here are some of the ways that slow shipping can impact the tech industry.
Slow Car Manufacturing
All new cars have components that require microchips and other computerized parts. These parts are specially designed to monitor engine problems, automatically correct issues, and report what’s going on. They help regulate the amount of gas you burn while you’re driving and they help your engine shift into other gears automatically. And of course, in electric cars, they help everything run. Because the auto industry relies heavily on computerized components, if there are shipping delays, they will be impacted as well. When cars need repairs and mechanics can’t get the parts, it’s often because of challenges in shipping.
Smartphones
Want the newest smartphone? You might have to wait. Some smartphone components are made in factories overseas and when shipping is slow, they are slow to arrive in stores and in the hands of consumers. This means that although the product is made in the U.S.A. they may be waiting on parts so they can complete the build. While getting the latest gadget sounds fun, if you need a replacement for a broken phone, you might need to go with whatever is available until your desired phone shows up in the store. When there are shipping delays, it causes shortages that last temporarily until those materials are finally unloaded from the ships and put on trucks for delivery.
Gaming Computer Parts
It would make sense that if tech equipment and other electronic supplies are held up on ships, that gaming computers would be impacted as well. When you’re trying to create the perfect computer build to handle all your intense gaming needs, it’s critical to have the best parts. Gaming computers are known for their fast chips, video cards that create the most realistic imagery and more. While you could buy a computer in the store, you may need additional parts to get the perfect capacity. This is a challenge when you rely on overseas stores to send your parts via cargo ship.
How to Overcome Shipping Challenges
Even when there aren’t too many ships waiting for a port to unload at, overseas shipping is always a challenge. If it’s affordable, it’s slow and if you want speed, you’ll pay a big price for it. Since technology itself relies on speed, you can’t always wait around for parts to magically appear at the local computer stores. You can order parts online from various vendors who may have items in stock here in the U.S.A. Additionally, they may be able to procure parts that you are struggling to find.
When you’re looking for items on Amazon, understand that these sellers also rely on cargo ships to deliver their items to Amazon warehouses and fulfillment centers around the country. Additionally, their shipments could be delayed due to paperwork and customs issues at the ports. These sellers can get help for their products by understanding what to do about Amazon FBA stuck shipments. Often, they need to leverage brokers to get their products from the port to Amazon and ultimately to your door.
If you’re ordering directly from a company that ships items from places like China and India, understand that it’s your responsibility to pay for all customs fees. Not understanding when to do this can mean that your stuff gets held up in shipping and you can’t build your computer, get your new smartphone, or fix your car.
One way to overcome these challenges is to pay more for shipping. Often the cheap shipping is the slow shipping that goes on boats. The more expensive shipping can go on an airplane and get to you potentially within days or a week instead of weeks. There is less risk of a hold up and as long as all the customs and duties are paid, you should be able to get your computer and tech parts without waiting for thousands of ships to unload.