Client Overview
Customer: Water Chemical Supplier — Critical logistics partner for essential water treatment supply chains
Origin: Multiple international regions (diversified sourcing)
Destination: Municipalities and industrial customers across North America
Objective
Ensure uninterrupted delivery of water treatment chemicals, critical to public health, during severe global supply chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Navigate volatile carrier networks, border restrictions, and port congestion while shielding clients from shortages, delays, and financial penalties.
Key Shipment Details
Goods Transported: Water treatment chemicals (hazardous materials)
Container Type: Ocean containers, regional warehousing units, and OTR (Over-The-Road) hazmat trucking
Modes of Transport:
Ocean Freight (secured dedicated space with carriers)
Warehousing (regional, hazmat-certified facilities)
Over-the-Road Domestic Transportation (hazmat-certified drivers and last-mile haulers)
Special Considerations:
Multi-modal routing control for flexibility and risk mitigation
24/7 tracking, proactive client communications, and customs pre-clearance
Rapid rerouting during COVID outbreaks at logistics hubs
95% on-time delivery rate maintained over two years
Zero detention, demurrage, or shutdown penalties passed to clients
Situation
During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, global logistics came to a near standstill. Port closures, flight cancellations, container shortages, labor disruptions, and overwhelmed shipping lanes created chaos across supply chains worldwide.
In the midst of this turmoil, Vonova - a critical logistics partner for essential goods - was entrusted with a vital mission: to maintain a continuous supply of water treatment chemicals for municipalities and industrial customers throughout North America. As the pandemic worsened, so did the complexity of that mission.
Task
Vonova faced a single, high-stakes objective:
Ensure the uninterrupted delivery of water treatment chemicals — a non-negotiable public health necessity — amid extreme global supply chain disruption.
This required navigating unstable carrier networks, changing border protocols, and shifting port conditions, while also shielding clients from supply gaps, delays, and costly penalties.
Action
Vonova activated its crisis logistics playbook, executing a flexible and resilient strategy centered on client protection:
1. Diversified Sourcing
To mitigate geopolitical and pandemic-related risk, we expanded our supplier base across multiple regions, reducing dependency on any single origin point and ensuring consistent access to materials.
2. Multi-Modal Routing with Domestic Control
With ocean carriers reducing service to major ports, we abandoned traditional models and created a dynamic, end-to-end logistics network, including:
Regional hazmat-certified warehouses
Over-the-road (OTR) hazmat drivers
Last-mile container haulers
This structure gave us full visibility and control, minimizing delays and eliminating detention and demurrage charges.
Example:
When a COVID outbreak disabled 90% of drivers at a key warehouse, we swiftly rerouted shipments to alternate facilities and covered all per-diem costs. Clients experienced zero service disruptions.
3. Strategic Carrier Partnerships
Amid severe capacity shortages, we secured dedicated space with key steamship lines, ensuring consistent shipping lanes regardless of fluctuating rates.
4. Real-Time Visibility & Communication
We deployed 24/7 tracking and proactive communication channels, enabling fast, adaptive response to disruptions and ensuring transparency for our clients.
5. Customs & Compliance Expertise
Our in-house customs team pre-cleared shipments, accelerating border crossings and reducing wait times at congested U.S. ports.
Result
95% On-Time Delivery Rate across all chemical shipments over two years
Zero Client Shutdowns due to chemical shortages - an extraordinary outcome during a global crisis
No Detention or Demurrage Fees passed on to clients
Secured relationship to continue servicing the client
Above all
Our efforts ensured that communities across North America had continued access to clean, safe water - even during one of the most challenging supply chain periods in modern history.