Container Freight Station Services (CFS)
Container Freight Station Services (CFS)
Mitchell Cotts Freight has established a Container Freight Station (CFS). The facility located adjacent to Mitchell Cotts Freight Kenya Limited Mombasa office and warehouse complex, is a gazetted and fully licensed dry port. The CFS facility comprises of 120,000sqm of open yard and covered warehouses of 125,000 sq.ft each. The facility is enclosed with a brick parameter wall secured by an electric fence and motion sensor s connected to an alarm system supported by back up response situated approximately meters from the complex. The compound is flood lit with overhead halogen lamps and is secured on a 24-hour basis by day and night guards. There is also dog surveillance employed at night to ensure that in the unlikely event that an intrusion is not otherwise detected. Security in the facility is therefore of the highest standards possible given the value of the goods stored and cleared through the facility.
The freight station is designed to handle full container loads (FCL) and less than container load (LCL) cargoes that are transferred directly from Kilindini seaport to the Mitchell Cotts CFS upon discharge from the carrier’s vessels. Upon discharge from vessel, Full Container Loads are cleared through the Kenya Ports Authority Container Terminal and immediately transferred to Mitchell Cotts Freight CFS located 500 Metres from Kenya Ports Authority gate B. On arrival at Mitchell Cotts C.F.S., offloading the container and de-stuffing of the goods is carried out where applicable and the customs procedures such as verification are undertaken.
Mitchell Cotts CFS is ideal for imported vehicles and machinery to safeguard the respective importer from the prevalent pilferage at the Kilindini seaport area. All statutory authorities have offices within the CFS area. There is a Resident Customs Officer, Port Health, Port Police and Kenya Bureau of Standards personnel at the CFS. The Public service officials and Mitchell Cotts staff facilitate swift and efficient clearance of customer’s goods and consequently save importers from unnecessary delays and costs occasioned by bureaucracy.
PROCEDURE OF CONSIGNING GOODS TO MITCHELL COTTS C.F.S.
There are two ways in which goods being imported into Kenya can be consigned to Mitchell Cotts C.F.S.
The procedure to be used is determined by two circumstances
- When the goods have not yet been shipped.
- When the goods have already left the port of loading
Below are procedures to be used in the two circumstances
When Goods have not been shipped
The Importer (Consignee) in the contract of sale should instruct the shipper (Supplier) to insert the following remark on their shipping instructions Final destination: `Mitchell Cotts C.F.S.’
The shipper upon handling over the cargo to the shipping line will be requested by the shipping agent at the port of loading to confirm the details of the Bill of Lading before the agent prints the final Bill of Lading whose details are used to prepare the ship’s manifest.
At this point the shipper should ensure that the destination instructions are as follows
Port of Loading: Antwerp, Hamburg etc.
Port of Discharge: Mombasa
Final Destination: Mitchell Cotts C.F.S.
With the above details the ship’s, manifest will distinguish those containers or cargoes that are for onward carriage to other inland stations such as I.C.D.E. Nairobi and Mitchell Cotts C.F.S. The shipping line’s manifest lodged with the Kenya Ports Authority Operations Department is the document used in planning discharge of the vessel. All containers consigned to Mitchell Cotts C.F.S. will be offloaded directly from the vessel and transported to the C.F.S.
When the carrier Vessel has already left the Load Port
In the event that the goods have already been shipped and the Final Destination on the Bill of Lading has not been specified, The Importer (Consignee) can instruct the local shipping agent of the carrier vessel in writing to amend the ship’s manifest before lodging it with the Kenya Ports Authority
The written instructions to the shipping line should be copied to Mitchell Cotts Freight in order for them to follow up the insertion in the manifest lodged with Kenya Ports Authority. It is very important to have the instructions given to the local shipping agent before the vessel arrives as this will save delays in amending the Final destination to the intended one.
