People are always looking for new ways to better transportation of goods in a timely and safe fashion. One such method is using air transportation or air cargo services. There are even specific airlines, called cargo airlines, that are designated for only moving cargo nationally and internationally. As you can imagine, many new jobs have opened up with the air and ocean cargo lines, such as a purchasing agent job. An individual applying for such a job needs a purchasing agent certification to become one, but the purchasing agent responsibilities play a large role in how efficiently cargo gets moved and how much it costs all parties involved to do so. It’s an exciting job in a steadily increasing field of transportation.
What Is Air Cargo Service?
An air cargo service is responsible for overseeing and controlling how resources like goods, energy, information, people, etc., move from production sources to the final selling destination. As you can probably imagine, purchasing agent jobs are quite open in this kind of field. Despite the purchasing agent certification needed, depending on the organization, you may not need anything higher than a bachelor’s degree, just experience and on-the-job training.
What Are the Benefits of Air Cargo Services?
Air cargo is great for any goods or materials that are time sensitive due to spoiling or being perishable, because of how quickly it tends to move. This means they also have much higher control over their shipping process, because of how time sensitive the cargo tends to be. Adding on to that, because the shipping time is so fast, the risk of damage to any of the goods being transported becomes much lower and provides a higher quality delivery of the ordered product. If that weren’t enough, air cargo can dramatically cut costs in terms of packaging, freight, and labor costs, since it’s higher security and transported more quickly.
What is A Purchasing Agent In Charge Of?
A purchasing agent is someone who responsible for ensuring that enough essential materials are available for a business to successfully operate. They may work alone (in the case of a smaller company or institution) or be part of a much larger team. The purchasing agent is also often tasked with the negotiation of prices with vendors who sell the materials the business needs. They’re expected to get the best price for the highest quality of materials. A purchasing agent will often also keep inventory of what is in stock and what needs to be ordered, and can sometimes even keep accounts for the company or institution he or she works for.
How Do I Get A Purchasing Agent Certification?
Organizations such as the Institute for Supply Management, The American Purchasing Society, and The Association for Operations Management all offer certification programs that you can find by accessing their websites. Other institutions like colleges or universities may offer it through a specific course or program, especially those with schools of business. You could do these courses either online or in person.
Air cargo transportation is an exciting new field and a way for many people with a detail-oriented interest to make a good living as a purchasing agent.