Pain Points of Intermodal Transport for Foreign Trade Enterprises? Agency Solutions Solve Customs Clearance and Transportation Difficulties

Typical Pain Points of Intermodal Transport for Foreign Trade Enterprises: Mr.Zhai’s Experience

In March 2026,Mr.Zhai from an electronics factory in Shanghai encountered trouble: his company was going to export 100 cartons of circuit boards to Hamburg,Germany,and chose the combined mode of sea-rail transport plus end road delivery,originally aiming to reduce costs,but ended up falling into three pitfalls——

First,rail transport connection delay: after loading at Ningbo Port,the originally scheduled Zhengzhou-Hamburg rail transport shift was postponed for 2 days due to tight space,and Mr.Zhai’s team did not receive the notice in time,resulting in cargo detention at the port.Second,cargo detention during customs clearance: during EU customs clearance,it was found that the invoice title was inconsistent with the certificate of origin,so the goods were temporarily detained by Hamburg Customs.Third,foreign exchange settlement delay: due to incomplete logistics documents,the bank delayed processing the foreign exchange settlement application,so Mr.Zhai had to advance 10% of the order value as liquidated damages.

Mr.Zhai’s experience is not an isolated case: in the first quarter of 2026,among intermodal transport orders of Shanghai foreign trade enterprises,32% were delayed due to connection problems,28% involved cargo detention caused by customs clearance errors,and 41% had the problem of asynchronous foreign exchange settlement and logistics.These pain points directly affect the cash flow and order stability of enterprises.

Core Reasons for Intermodal Transport Pain Points

Why is intermodal transport seemingly efficient but prone to problems?The core lies in three disconnections:

• Document disconnection: document requirements for sea transport,rail transport and road transport are different (for example,ENS declaration is required for the EU,and TIR documents are required for rail transport),so it is easy for enterprises to make mistakes when docking with multiple parties;
• Node disconnection: intermodal transport involves at least 2 transport entities,and there is no dedicated person to track the connection of each node,so "chain break" is prone to occur;
• Information disconnection: logistics progress is not synchronized with foreign exchange receipt and payment and customs clearance information,which makes it impossible for enterprises to adjust capital arrangements in time.

3 Practical Solutions for Intermodal Transport

Solution 1: Entrust Zhongshen to Conduct Full-link Document Pre-review and Unified Docking

What it is: Zhongshen conducts pre-review of all transport segment documents (sea bill of lading,rail waybill,road waybill) and customs clearance documents (invoice,packing list,certificate of origin,commodity inspection certificate) in advance targeting the multi-link documents of intermodal transport,and uniformly docks with shipping companies,railway authorities and customs.

Why it works: Documents involved in intermodal transport vary greatly (for example,"TIR pass mark" is required for rail transport,and "container seal number" needs to be confirmed for sea transport),so it is easy for enterprises to miss details when docking on their own; unified pre-review can find problems such as wrong title and inconsistent HS code in advance to avoid cargo detention.

How to operate:

• The client provides cargo information (HS code,quantity,destination,consignee information);
• The document department of Zhongshen completes the pre-review within 3 hours and marks the problem points (for example,"the title of the certificate of origin is inconsistent with the contract");
• After adjustment,recheck is conducted,and the documents are submitted to each transport entity and customs after confirmation,and synchronized to the client for confirmation at the same time.
• Core coverage of Zhongshen’s document pre-review:
• Sea transport: bill of lading type (straight/to order),container size matching,ENS declaration information;
• Rail transport: validity of TIR documents,railway station connection information,space confirmation;
• Customs clearance: EU CE certification documents,ASEAN RCEP certificate of origin,Japan import declaration form;
• Foreign exchange: correlation verification between foreign exchange receipt and payment documents and logistics information (for example,the bill of lading number is consistent with the foreign exchange settlement form).

Solution 2: Zhongshen’s Exclusive Logistics Manager Tracks Transport Nodes Throughout the Process

What it is: Each intermodal transport order is assigned 1 exclusive logistics manager,who tracks the whole process from cargo packing to end delivery,and synchronizes the status of each node in real time (loading time,rail transport departure time,customs clearance progress,end delivery time).

Why it works: Intermodal transport has many nodes (for example,Shanghai → Ningbo Port → Hamburg Port,Germany → Berlin rail transport → client’s warehouse),and delay is prone to occur if there is no dedicated person to monitor the connection of each node; the exclusive manager can coordinate alternative solutions in advance (for example,adjust the rail transport shift if the ship is delayed).

How to operate:

• After the order is confirmed,the logistics manager sets up a tracking group (client,document staff,shipping companies,railway authorities);
• Update node status every 2 hours (feedback within 1 hour in case of abnormality,for example,"the ship is delayed for 4 hours,and the rail transport shift has been coordinated to be postponed for 1 day");
• Confirm the next transport arrangement 1 day before node connection to avoid chain break; synchronize the driver’s contact information to the client during end delivery.

Solution 3: Zhongshen’s Intermodal Transport Cost Optimization Package

What it is: Zhongshen integrates 20 years of logistics resources and launches the intermodal transport cost optimization package,including combined discount,customs clearance express channel,and foreign exchange receipt and payment synchronization service.

Why it works: A single enterprise has weak bargaining power with transport entities,and the cost of each segment of intermodal transport is high when superimposed; Zhongshen’s integrated resources can get 10%-15% combined discount for each segment,while express customs clearance reduces storage costs,and foreign exchange synchronization avoids capital occupation.

Core Advantages of Zhongshen’s Intermodal Transport Agency Service

Why choose Zhongshen?The core lies in three "specialties":

• Professional experience: 20 years of deep engagement in the industry,familiar with intermodal transport rules of more than 100 countries around the world (such as EU customs clearance process,document requirements of Southeast Asian Free Trade Area);
• Exclusive service: 1 logistics manager for each order,abnormal response time ≤ 1 hour;
• Full link coverage: one-stop solution from customs declaration and inspection to foreign exchange receipt and payment,export tax refund,no need for enterprises to dock with multiple entities.

In the first quarter of 2026,Zhongshen has helped more than 320 foreign trade enterprises complete intermodal transport orders,with an average logistics efficiency increase of 35% and cost reduction of 18%.For clients like Mr.Zhai,after entrusting Zhongshen,the customs clearance time of their subsequent European orders was shortened by 3 days,the foreign exchange settlement time was shortened by 4 days,and there were no more delay problems.

If your enterprise encounters problems such as poor connection,customs clearance delay and foreign exchange settlement delay in intermodal transport,you may contact Zhongshen’s exclusive consultant to obtain customized solutions.