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| ESI - Frequently Asked Questions |
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| 1. What makes marine container inventory levels fluctuate? |
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| - Business levels of import, export, and domestic traffic |
| - Pier/Ramp congestion |
| - Severe weather |
| - Railroad maintenance and repair projects |
| - Steamship line empty repositioning |
| - Chinese New Year |
| - Street-turns |
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| 2. What information do I need to get a rate quote? |
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| - Ramp corridors (origin and destination) |
| - Container size & cargo weight |
| - Commodity: hazardous, over-dimensional |
| - Special hequirements: shipper pool, customer nominated trucker |
| - International: port, pier, vessel, voyage, international bill of lading |
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| 3. Are fuel surcharges (FSCs) included in rate quotes? |
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| No. FSC's will appear as a separate line item on our invoices. ESI's FSC level is broadcast monthly and is based on the BNSF's FSC per their website. Quotes that include drayage are calculated at the same monthly percentage. |
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| 4. How do I know where to pick up and/or terminate containers? |
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| Origin and destination container yards (CY's) are provided when ESI equipment is booked. The CY's will appear on booking confirmations from our online suite of services (www.esi-intermodal.com) or by contacting ESI Customer Service. |
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| 5. How long before a booking/release number expires? |
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| Release numbers are active for 5 business days. |
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| 6. Where do I send my billing instructions? |
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| Fax billing instructions to 630-645-9861. An ESI billing form is available to download at esi-intermodal.com. ESI provides EDI services for rail billing efficiencies (ask us how). |
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| 7. How long does it take to activate rail billing? |
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| After ESI receives billing instructions, rail billing is transmitted every 5 minutes. Railroad's ask for a window of 4 hours for manual billing (such as hazardous shipments). Please note that railroad computer processing volumes occasionally cause billing delays. |
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| 8. Can I move ESI equipment Eastbound? |
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| Sorry, not at this time. |
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| 9. Do you have 48' & 53' containers? |
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| Sorry, not at this time. We do offer quality 20', 40' (standard and high-cube) and 45' marine containers and chassis. |
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| 10. If I get a container and then cancel the move, what happens? |
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| The occasional container that has been gate released from an origin CY can (in most instances) be returned without charge. |
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| 11. Who do I call for: |
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| - Flat tire repair? |
| - Bad order chassis? |
| - Flip authorization? |
| - Unit on wrong chassis? |
| - Unit on the ground? |
| - Release number/pick up number is incorrect? |
| Call ESI @ 630-645-9860 -- or -- 888-374-6625 prompt #1 -- or -- |
| http://www.esi-intermodal.com/jspGeneral/jspContactUs.jsp |
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| 12. What are Q-types? |
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| Q-types are an ESI naming convention which segregates traffic types: domestic v. international loads in private v. OOCL v. ESI-furnished non-OOCL equipment. |
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| Q400 General Rate Matrix |
| - Domestic loads in OOCL containers |
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| Q4** Customer Specific Rates |
| - Domestic loads in OOCL containers |
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| Q2** Customer Specific Rates |
| - Domestic loads in ESI-furnished non-OOCL marine containers |
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| Q5** Customer Specific Rates |
| - Domestic loads in shipper-furnished marine containers |
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| Q600 General Rate Matrix |
| - Empty shipper-furnished marine containers |
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| Q6** Customer Specific Rates |
| - Empty shipper-furnished marine containers |
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| Q8** Customer Specific Rates |
| - International loads in shipper-furnished marine containers -- steamship lines only |
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| Q900 General Rate Matrix |
| - International loads in shipper-furnished marine containers |
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| Q9** Customer Specific Rates |
| - International loads in shipper-furnished marine containers |
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