News & Insights

New regulations covering the safe shipment of lithium batteries went into effect beginning August 7, 2015, after being pushed back by six months to allow the industry enough time to adjust to the new requirements. Ruling HM-224F, set by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), requires shippers moving lithium batteries by ground to meet specific package marking and hazard communication documentation standards. The new regulations require that packages containing fewer than 24 cells or fewer than 12 batteries to have a hazard mark or special documentation when being shipped by ground in the same […]

August 12, 2015

Munich Reinsurance Company, one of the world’s leading reinsurers, earlier this month released its review on natural catastrophes for the first half of 2015. (Roanoke Trade is a subsidiary of Munich Re Group.) Although insured losses from natural catastrophes totaled about $12 billion in the first half of 2015, lower than the long-term average of $15 billion, there were significant deaths as a result of the earthquake in Nepal and heat wave in India and Pakistan. In fact, in the first half of the year, a total of over 16,000 people died in severe weather events and earthquakes. According to […]

July 31, 2015

Sheila Skipper, Roanoke Trade, Regional Vice President, recently announced the addition of La Donna Logan to Roanoke Trade’s Houston Marine Department as Marine Manager. La Donna comes to Roanoke with over 18 years of experience in the freight forwarding industry. Most recently, she worked with Lynden International as their Director of Global Projects. Our clients will soon see how her industry experience and passion for customer service make her a strong addition to the Roanoke team. Please join Roanoke in welcoming La Donna to the team. Joe Chillino has been the Marine Manager in Houston since 2010 and during this […]

July 24, 2015

Workers’ Compensation insurance for most businesses, including logistics service providers and transportation intermediaries, represents a significant operational expense with companies looking for ways to drive down costs. Some of the measures that help mitigate exposures of on-the-job-accidents and injuries and reduce cost drivers include safety programs and training, return-to-work programs, claims analysis, and a review of claims management and reporting procedures. In addition, a review of your Workers’ Compensation policies and related documents, including your experience modification worksheet, payroll audits, employee classifications, and loss-sensitive rating adjustments, is critical in determining where improvements can be made and where possible problems or […]

July 24, 2015

Roanoke is pleased to be a sponsor and exhibitor at the first annual conference of the newly formed Texas Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel on the beautiful San Antonio river walk August 13th through August 15th.  We are especially pleased to sponsor the luncheons on Thursday and Friday, with Friday’s keynote speaker CBP Assistant Commissioner Brenda Smith (Invited-Pending). Attending the Texas Customs Brokers and Forwarders conference sessions will not only provide you with the latest industry information from top experts, but as a bonus are also worth a total of 15.5 Certified Customs Specialist (CCS) […]

July 21, 2015

ATA Carnet, commonly referred to as the Merchandise Passport, is an international customs document and temporary export-import document used to ease customs clearance in 100 countries and territories. The ATA Carnet system was established by the international ATA convention and is governed by the World Customs Organization and International Chamber of Commerce and its World Chambers Federation to encourage world trade and reduce trade barriers created by different national customs regulations. An ATA Carnet eliminates duties and value-added tax (VAT) on merchandise that will be re-exported to the U.S. within 12 months. It also eliminates the need to post some […]

July 17, 2015