The “America’s Leading 3PLs” report—or Top 3PL issue, as we call it around the office—is a perennial favorite for Global Trade. For one, it’s always fun to work on something you know people are looking forward to reading, but more than that, the third-party logistics companies named in the feature are just flat-out impressive in their scope, abilities and the value they bring to the U.S. shippers who read our magazine. The industry has come such a long way, you would be hard pressed to find an international business function these specialists can’t handle.

So often we talk to exporters who rely on an unexpecting victim within their company to navigate the complex world of international shipping, negotiating the various modes of transportation, commonly only as far as the port where a logistics company hired by their foreign partner on the other end of the transaction takes over. Perhaps the partner is on to something.

Beyond transportation, there’s much offered in terms of warehousing and distribution, business software to stay in control of the complex living organism that is your business, and value-added services that can unburden you of everything from foreign language packaging to export documents. What this Global Trade report aims to do is make an introduction, so we’ve placed our selections—made in partnership with top 3PL consultancy Armstrong & Associates—into 10 categories, nine of which are based on shipper needs and another, “15 To Watch,” is focused on companies that are either just entering the list or really shaking things up in the industry.

Once you’ve gotten an idea of the companies you’re interested in, head over to our website, www.globaltrademag.com, and check out our newly launched Global Trade 101 section, a resource guide for detailed information on logistics, global banking, site selection and more. There you’ll find a reservoir of 3PLs that have provided full company profiles to help you form a more complete picture of what they can do for you. Many are able to be contacted directly to help you solve your logistics challenges, and more are coming soon.