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AVOIDING ERROR IN THE BILL OF LADING LIFECYCLE

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Archives, Global Shippers 101, Global Trade Daily, International Trade

AVOIDING ERROR IN THE BILL OF LADING LIFECYCLE

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There is constant chatter surrounding gaps within the supply chain–from driver shortages to lack of technology adoption. While solutions to these problems may seem simple enough, many fail to realize the multiple moving parts of a supply chain that would need to adopt these solutions.

Just this year, the Port of Los Angeles became the first port in the Western Hemisphere to process 10 million container units in a 12-month period. “Over the past 12 months, port terminals have worked an average of 15 container ships each day, up from a pre-pandemic average of 10 ships a day, representing a significant increase in productivity,” the Port of L.A. reports. With America’s busiest port breaking records for annual volume, it sets a new standard for the industry.

With a new record of goods being shipped, this introduces a magnitude of opportunities for error. Perhaps one of the most common is in the bill of lading (BOL) lifecycle. A BOL serves as a contract between an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), the shipper and the carrier–acting as a legal document to protect all parties involved.

From the time an item is developed overseas to the time it takes to reach an end consumer, that product and BOL have switched hands multiple times. There’s the OEM, the carriers, port staff, freighter’s crew, other port’s employees, the carrier again, a potential distributor, more carriers and then finally the retail store, where the end consumer can purchase the product. With products being mass shipped and divided at ports or distribution centers, this leaves room for error when it comes to BOL accuracy.

Because of this, an electronic bill of lading tool (eBOL) can help create a valid, blockchain-like record of a product’s journey–from origination to end consumer–resulting in less human error, faster turnaround times and reduced inflation costs.

What can go wrong with the BOL? 

According to a recent study, the top challenges in supply chain management were recorded to be visibility (28%), fluctuating consumer demand (19.7%) and inventory management (13.2%). Consider the effects of COVID-19 this past year, and these areas have since then largely increased. In fact, the global e-commerce market is expected to total $4.89 trillion this year, and keep growing over the next five years. 

With rising demand, the BOL is essential in the supply chain lifecycle to ensure accuracy and transparency throughout. This means facilitating collaboration, standardization, digitization and automation across all supply chain parts.

With the BOL serving as proof that the shipper has given permission to haul goods, the traditional paper copy leaves room for human error. For example, during a pickup or delivery, the driver is recording the product, quantity, whether it’s cold storage or not and the final destination of a shipment. Next, the clerk would sign the paperwork and the driver would be on their way. After that, the BOL paperwork would need to be faxed in, but consider the driver’s route. A driver might be gone for a week or two (even more) before the BOLs would be able to be turned in. And it doesn’t stop there–once the driver’s packet of BOLs makes it back to headquarters, the office then needs to process them manually and store the physical copy for years for auditing purposes.

The long turnaround time simply sets companies back. Additionally, if a driver recorded the wrong product name or number, this could result in a product having to be returned, costing companies time and money.

How can an eBOL platform help?

An eBOL is not a new concept within the supply chain, but due to the amount of moving parts and interoperability challenges, it hasn’t reached wide-scale adoption. However, due to the visibility, inventory and growing capacity as well as safety challenges, companies are starting to include eBOL and digital pickup and deliveries as part of their supply chain digital transformation initiatives. An eBOL tool creates streamlined workflows for all supply chain parties, resulting in more efficient shipments and greater transparency. 

As discussed, traditional paper BOLs leave room for human error and improper documentation in addition to lengthy turnaround times. By eliminating paperwork and manual processes, an eBOL can instantly capture key information and significantly cut down on dwell times. In fact, companies who have used an eBOL tool saw a significant decrease in driver dwell times–from 66 minutes on average down to 23 minutes.

Going beyond paperwork, an eBOL tool has the ability to boost collaboration by supporting just-in-time manufacturing and replenishment planning. This provides visibility that allows logistics partners to make faster decisions in case freight needs to be re-routed to different plants, distribution centers and stores to meet customer demands. Overall, the entire supply chain becomes more agile. 

Additionally, given the current environment of COVID-19 cases spiking and taking into consideration the delta variant, eBOL tools are effective in reducing health and safety risks for drivers and yard workers by minimizing paper and physical interactions. Now that information can be accurately tracked and shared through a contactless option, this makes the process self-service for drivers and eliminates the need for in-person check-ins. 

What effect does an eBOL tool have on the end consumer? 

It all starts with capacity. Driver shortage is not a new concept in the supply chain and logistics industry. Currently, the supply chain is stressed with a heavy demand and not enough capacity due to driver shortages, which can drive up shipping costs that translate to the end consumer. 

However, if drivers across the supply chain spend less dwell time at facilities, that time can be spent making an additional stop. One more delivery added to a driver’s route could help create more capacity and stabilize shipping prices that has the potential to trickle down savings to consumer products.

In addition to strengthening supply chains, companies across the country are trying to find ways to keep inflation from rising. Using an eBOL tool turns those in-person interactions at facilities into quick, digital processes, streamlining the delivery and pickup process. By getting drivers in and out of facilities faster, companies can improve capacity challenges by enabling drivers to add another stop to their days, which will hopefully reduce shipping costs and benefit consumers in the long run. 

________________________________________________________________________

Brian Belcher is the COO and co-founder of Vector, a contactless pickup and delivery platform that ensures supply chain partners get the right load to the right place at the right time. Prior to Vector, Belcher led Customer Success at Addepar, a wealth management platform, which manages more than $2 trillion in client assets. Before joining Addepar, Belcher co-founded Computodos, a socially-minded supply chain solution that helps source, transport and distribute recycled computers to developing countries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Santa Clara University. 

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Archives, Global Trade Daily, Site Selection, Stories

INTERMODAL IS HOT: HOW SIX CITIES ARE MEETING LONG-HAUL CHALLENGES

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How hot is intermodal right now? Total volumes rose 20.4% year-over-year in the second quarter of 2021, according to the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) Intermodal Quarterly report. 

International containers gained 24.8% from 2020; domestic shipments, 15.7%; and trailers, 18.5%, according to the Calverton, Maryland-based association’s report, which also found that intermodal volumes not only grew for the fourth consecutive quarter in Q2, but the double-digit gain was the largest quarterly increase since Q3 of 2010 as well as the sixth quarter with a double-digit growth rate in the history of the data. 

“What is noteworthy is the breadth of the gains,” said Joni Casey, president and CEO of IANA, before September’s IANA Expo in Long Beach, California, where the Q2 surge was a source of industry optimism. “With one or two exceptions, the three market segments showed positive performance in all of IANA’s 10 regions.”

Trans-Canada led with a 29.6% total growth increase, followed by the Southeast-Southwest at 28.9% and the Midwest-Northwest at 26.6%. The Intra-Southeast likewise posted a 25.9% increase; the South Central-Southwest, 24.5%; and the Midwest-Southwest, 21.8%. The Northeast-Midwest came in at 20.9%.

“Freight volumes are expected to slow but experience steady q/q growth into 2022,” forecasts the 2021 Second Quarter Intermodal Quarterly report. “For 2021 as a whole, truck loadings are forecasted to be 7% higher than 2020 levels.”

Freight demand pressures, the end of consumer stimulus infusions and unemployment supplement and the ongoing surge in small new trucking companies have complicated matters, according to the report. “Intermodal remains highly competitive with trucking due to very high rates and tight driver supply. 

This situation will likely continue at least into early 2022, however, could be affected by a quicker stabilization in the trucking market, as reflected by a peak in truck spot metrics.” 

Managing the ups and downs of intermodal transport is greatly assisted by the IANA, whose roster includes more than 1,000 members from railroads, ocean carriers, ports, intermodal truckers and over-the-road highway carriers, intermodal marketing and logistic companies, and suppliers to the industry. (Learn more at intermodal.org.) But at the hyper-local level, economic development corporations (EDCs) also play a role in keeping freight trains rolling. Below are six cities meeting intermodal challenges with the help of their EDCs.

MILLERSBURG, OREGON

The Albay-Millersburg Economic Development Corporation estimates that 81% of the exported agricultural products from the Mid-Willamette Valley of Southern Oregon are loaded onto ships at the Seattle and Tacoma ports, with the remainder exported from ports in Long Beach (8 percent) and Oakland (3 percent), California. 

Complicating the flow of produce is traffic congestion near Portland, Seattle, Tacoma and farther down Interstate 5 into California.

However, like an oasis of calm sits Millersburg, which allows agricultural producers in the region to consolidate their products efficiently and avoid bumper-to-bumper nightmares altogether. To that end, the Linn Economic Development Group (LEDG), which is an affiliate of the Albay-Millersburg EDC, is constructing the Mid-Willamette Valley Intermodal Center (MWVIC) in Millersburg.

The town of around 2,000 people just happens to be where the Union Pacific Railroad mainline, BNSF’s Portland Western Railroad and I-5 come together. The MWVIC was made possible by passage of the state’s Keep Oregon Moving legislation, which appropriated $25 million toward development.

The intermodal center will include a main office, parking lot, space for about 100 trucks to park overnight, amenities for truck drivers, capabilities to handle domestic and international containers, track space for inbound and outbound trains, a 60,000-square-foot storage warehouse and docks to support reloading and transloading onto rail, with capacity for longer-term storage of product.

Agricultural producers and train operators are not the only beneficiaries of the project. Shippers will now have the option of choosing the best transportation alternative for each individual load. The LEDG estimates that under full utilization, private transportation cost savings will total $2.1 million per year.

But the public should turn out to be the biggest winner. Reducing the number of trucks on the highways would lower maintenance costs, reduce congestion, improve air quality and decrease carbon emissions—while the MWVIC at the same time increases jobs and local spending. 

ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA

The Norfolk Southern Allentown Rail Yard is among the railroad’s largest facilities, but only a few of the 200 manufacturers in the Pennsylvania town transport goods by rail. The Allentown Economic Development Corporation would like to change that. Saying of the yard “we’re very fortunate to have it,” Scott Unger, executive director of the Allentown EDC, says he and his team are pulling out all the stops to increase rail usage.

Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Rail Freight administers a special grant program called the Rail Freight Assistance Program that provides financial assistance to companies that are interested in bringing a railroad spur directly to their property for freight shipments. The goal of the grant program is to preserve and stimulate economic development through new and expanded rail service.

Also hoping the state incentive program lights a fire under local manufacturers is the R. J. Corman Railroad Co., LLC, which owns 11 Class 3 short line railroads in the Mid-Atlantic and the South, as well as the R. J. Corman Allentown Rail Yard.

“Products that are ideal for transloading include palletized commodities which can be loaded and unloaded in a boxcar,” explained John Gogniat, director of Commercial Development for R. J. Corman. “In addition, products such as lumber or steel that can be unloaded with a forklift are ideal candidates. That said, we are open to entertaining any potential commodity and will develop a mutually desirable solution for its loading and unloading.”

Gogniat notes that Allentown’s strategic location provides access to Philadelphia, Scranton, York, Harrisburg, Wilmington, New York and beyond.

WILKES COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Rail Industrial Access Program also uses state funds to help construct or refurbish railroad spur tracks required by a new or expanding company. Program funding is intended to modernize railroad tracks to ensure effective and efficient freight deliveries.

Many companies taking advantage of the incentive are located in Wilkes County, which was established in 1777 and is still known today as a mecca for outdoor recreation, small-town living . . . and a big business mentality. 

Consider the Yadkin Valley Railroad, which offers Wilkes County businesses rail access to ship their products into the Ronda and Roaring River areas. Operating out of the Winston-Salem area and hauling 11,500 carloads per year with freight, Yadkin joins G&O’s short line railroads, which offer connections to CSX and Norfolk Southern, in figuring into the logistical operations of Charlotte Regional Intermodal Facility.

Wilkes County Economic Development Corporation will point businesses to other local and state incentive programs to improve rail access—dependent on the applicant’s potential to create new jobs and invest capital in the region. The aim is to get companies to locate or expand in North Carolina versus another state.

“The North Carolina Railroad Company partners with the state’s economic development community and railroads on initiatives designed to drive job creation, freight rail use and economic growth,” reads an EDC release. “Through NCRR Invests we evaluate requests for investments to address the freight rail infrastructure needs of companies considering location or expansion in the state.” 

But Wilkes County does not live by rail alone, as the EDC also trumpets a location that is close to major freeways and interstates, two international airports (Charlotte Douglas and Piedmont Triad) and three major East Coast ports (Wilmington, North Carolina; Norfolk, Virginia; and Charleston, South Carolina). 

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

An ambitious program was born out of congestion, pollution and unconnected cargo transportation options in the Big Apple. Freight NYC aims to expand the use of rail and water to move food, building materials and other goods that are normally trucked in from outside the five boroughs.

“Freight NYC will better equip New York City to meet 21st-century demand by modernizing the city’s freight infrastructure, reducing truck traffic and improving air quality, while creating nearly 5,000 good-paying jobs in the process,” says James Patchett, chief executive of the New York Economic Development Corporation. “This plan is a win-win for our environment and economy.”

The city would invest as much as $100 million in the program that would include a 500,000-square-foot distribution center on the site of the Brooklyn Army Terminal, adjacent to the New York New Jersey Rail carfloat hub, as well as a new air cargo center near John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens.

Private participation in a $20-30 million barge terminal on five acres of land owned by the city in Hunts Point, a major distribution crossroads for produce in the Bronx, is also part of the multimodal plan. 

Small rail freight yards on a line through Brooklyn and Queens, where goods would be transloaded to smaller vehicles for final delivery, is also envisioned.

DECATUR, ILLINOIS

When you think of the granddaddy of rail operations in the Midwest, you think of Chicago. That’s part of . . . heck, the main problem, according to Nicole Bateman, president of the Decatur Economic Development Corporation and executive director of the Midwest Inland Port. The Windy City is not only the nation’s busiest rail freight gateway, it’s the third-largest intermodal container/trailer port in the world, following Singapore and Hong Kong, according to the Illinois Department of Transportation.

What comes to mind when you think about freight, Singapore and Hong Kong? Congestion. As such, shippers on both ends of the supply chain need alternatives to Chicago—which is where Decatur (as Bateman’s fingers cross) comes in. 

Located 160 miles southwest of Chicago, Decatur is now being propped up by its EDC and the Midwest Inland Port as a distribution transportation center, which is fed not only by four railroads but easy access to interstates and airports. The port association is utilizing public-private partnerships to capitalize on Decatur’s geographic location, while the EDC seeks to make the city Illinois’ designated downstate freight transportation hub as a way to relieve rail and highway congestion in Chicago.

Users of the Midwest Inland Port have experienced savings in freight transportation costs and significant reduction in transit times, Bateman recently told American Shipper.

SEGUIN, TEXAS

Talk about strategic locations, Seguin sits alongside Interstate 10 and the banks of the Guadalupe River, with San Antonio a mere 35 minutes to the west, Austin only 55 minutes north and Houston about 2 ½ hours to the east.  

Besides the easy access to I-10, Seguin also connects to State Highway 130, which it bills as “the safe, fast and reliable alternative to congested Interstate 35 in Central Texas.” Two international airports (San Antonio and Austin-Bergstrom) and two deep-water ports (Houston and Corpus Christi) are an hour of so away.

But perhaps the biggest jewel in the close proximity crown is Union Pacific’s San Antonio Intermodal Terminal (SAIT), a $100 million state-of-the-art facility designed to support the growing intermodal volume in southern Texas. The expansive facility is designed to handle 250,000 annual container lifts as it serves markets across South Texas.  

If that hasn’t sold you, allow the Seguin Economic Development Corporation to work its magic. The EDC helps guide businesses through the maze of available loans, grants and tax breaks from the city, county and state. To hear the EDC tell it, finding applicants should be no sweat considering Seguin’s “easy access to four of the United States’ largest consumer markets, allowing manufactures to get their products to millions of consumers, all within a five-hour drive.”

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Archives, Global Logistics, Global Trade Daily, Stories

TECHNOLOGY LEADS TO MEET MODERN CHALLENGES: PART III

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For part three of our tech-focused feature, Global Trade identified industry players who confronted challenges with the help of technological partners. Our case studies are arranged by the categories Global Trade covers on the regular, including ocean carriers, ports, trucking, and warehousing. Read part one here and part two here.

OCEAN CARRIERS

Company: Atlantic Container Lines of Westfield, New Jersey

Challenge: Enhancing operations and market share for refrigerated shipments

Problem Solver: Carrier Transicold of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida

Solution: PrimeLINE refrigeration units

In an attempt to gain new operational advantages and efficiencies for its refrigerated shipping operations, Atlantic Container Line (ACL) began acquiring 150 new containers equipped with Carrier Transicold PrimeLINE refrigeration units in May. The cube-shaped, 40-foot-high containers, which help preserve and protect food, medicine and vaccine supplies, have been put into service on trade routes between the U.S. and western Europe.

“With its energy-efficient performance, the PrimeLINE refrigeration unit is a perfect complement for our fleet, which includes some of the world’s largest, most fuel-efficient and environmentally responsible roll-on/roll-off containerships,” says Maurizio Di Paolo, Corporate Liner Equipment Department manager, with the Naples, Italy-based Grimaldi Group that includes ACL in its portfolio.

Carrier’s Lynx Fleet digital platform monitors the cold-chain containers, although Di Paolo says that “is only the beginning” when it comes to providing benefits to the shipping line. “We are especially looking forward to the advantages that come with refrigeration unit health analytics and the subsequent efficiencies for our maintenance and repair operations,” he said at the containers’ roll out.

Lynx Fleet includes integrated telematics and a cloud-based architecture to ensure information is always up to date; a data management platform that provides enhanced visibility on the health and status of a fleet’s refrigerated containers, reducing operational costs and maintenance & repair expenses related to conducting new off-line pre-trip inspections; as well as platform accessibility from anywhere via smartphone, tablet or computer, through an interactive user-friendly, digital dashboard. The ACL units will also utilize Carrier’s Micro-Link 5 controller, the first and only one in the industry with wireless communication capability, providing greater memory, processing power and connectivity compared to standard controllers.

“We are pleased to support ACL’s modern fleet with our latest container refrigeration technology, which is designed to improve fleet efficiencies and help control operating costs,” says Kay Henze, Carrier’s account manager.

The deal with ACL was sealed a month after Carrier announced that SeaCube Containers LLC of Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, became the first intermodal equipment leasing company to incorporate Lynx Fleet into its fleet, with an initial deployment of 2,000 PrimeLINE units. 

“This is an exciting step forward for SeaCube as we move toward realizing our vision of telematics as a standard within our reefer fleet,” SeaCube CEO Bob Sappio mentioned at the time. “We are confident that the Lynx Fleet offerings will help drive improvements in our own operating metrics and resonate with our customers to help them achieve optimal reefer performance and act on data-driven insights.” 

PORTS

Entity: Port of Los Angeles, California

Challenge: Advancing the port’s ambitious Clean Air Action Plan  

Problem Solvers: Toyota Motor North America of Plano, Texas; Kenworth Truck Co. of Kirkland, Washington; Shell Oil Products US of Houston, Texas, and multiple stakeholders 

Solution: Hydrogen fuel cell electric freight vehicles and stations

North America’s leading seaport by container volume and cargo value, the Port of Los Angeles facilitated $259 billion in trade during 2020 and remained open with all terminals operational throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The port currently has 18 projects under way aimed at achieving clear air, clean water and sustainability.

Under an $82.5 million Shore-to-Store project, the port has teamed up with Shell, Toyota, Kenworth Truck Co. and several other public and private-sector partners for a 12-month demonstration of zero-emissions Class 8 trucks. The project—which rolls into a larger-scale, multiyear demonstration that is designed to advance the port’s Clean Air Action Plan goals—is designed to assess the operational and technical feasibility of the vehicles in a heavy-duty setting.

Kenworth designed and built the trucks that rely on a fuel cell electric system designed and built by Toyota. Of course, these vehicles need places to refuel, so Shell designed, built and will operate two new high-capacity hydrogen fueling stations in Wilmington, which is 7 miles from the port, and Ontario, which is 60 miles inland. The vehicles’ duty cycles will consist of local pickup and delivery and drayage near the port and short regional haul applications in the Inland Empire. 

“Transporting goods between our port and the Inland Empire is the first leg of this next journey toward a zero-emissions future,” said Port of L.A. Executive Director Gene Seroka during a demonstration in June. “This project is a model for developing and commercializing the next generation of clean trucks and cargo-handling equipment for the region and beyond. Just as the air we breathe extends beyond the port’s footprint, so should the clean air and economic benefits we believe this project will yield.”

Further expansion of the project will include five more hydrogen-fueled heavy-duty trucks, two battery-electric yard tractors and two battery-electric forklifts, whose feasibility under the rigorous demands of the Southern California market will be studied by the partnership. They will also measure the reduction of nitrogen oxide, particulate matter, greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants.

“Shell believes hydrogen offers a promising solution to achieving net-zero emissions both in terms of immediate improvements of local air quality as well as meeting long-term climate goals, especially for heavy-duty vehicles and for long-distance travel,” says Paul Bogers, Shell’s vice president, Hydrogen. “That’s why we are working with truck manufacturers, fleets, governments and others to coordinate hydrogen infrastructure investments in high-traffic freight areas like the Port of Los Angeles, Port of Long Beach, the Los Angeles basin and the Inland Empire.”

TRUCKING

Company: Paramount Transportation Logistics Services of Fort Myers, Florida

Challenge: Accelerate their digital freight management initiative

Problem Solver: Trucker Tools of Reston, Virginia

Solution: Smart Capacity real-time load tracking technology

Paramount Transportation Logistics Services (PTLS), which is part of the R+L Global Logistics family of companies, provides comprehensive logistics and transportation management services, including warehousing, distribution, asset-based truckload and LTL services in North America as well as freight forwarding globally. Having embarked on a strategic technology initiative to enhance broker efficiency, improve carrier engagement and expand the provision of real-time shipment information for customers, Paramount performed a detailed examination of companies to consider as a platform partner. Trucker Tools won the pony.

“Trucker Tools checks three principal capability boxes for us,” explains Mark Funk, Paramount’s director of Capacity Procurement. “The first is automated, real-time, GPS-based location tracking, which gives us reliable shipment updates every 15 minutes. Second is predictive freight matching, which automates finding available trucks, and makes it easier for truckers to book with us. By digitizing this process, we also cut the time and cost to cover a load by over 50 percent, increasing the number of loads our team can secure.” 

Trucker Tools’ multi-functional, multi-party mobile driver app and its wide adoption among the truckload community also factored into Paramount’s decision, Funk added. “Carriers are our customers, too,” he noted. “Importantly, we can leverage a common mobile app, familiar to thousands of independent truckload operators and small fleets, to access a much deeper pool of capacity and improve how we do business with them.”  

The Trucker Tools mobile app, which is available for both Android- and Apple-powered smartphones, is provided free of charge to independent truckers and small fleets with 10 or fewer vehicles, which together account for 90 percent of truckload market carriers, according to the company.

“We are excited to welcome Paramount to our growing community of over 300 brokers and 3PLs adopting Trucker Tools as their strategic partner for digital freight management,” says Prasad Gollapalli, founder and chief executive of Trucker Tools. “We truly see ourselves as an integral partner in our customers’ continuous journey to leverage emerging technology, improve how they engage with carriers and provide ever more sophisticated and valuable services to their customers.”

WAREHOUSING

Company: GEODIS of Levallois-Perret, France

Challenge: Improving job safety, comfort and the pool of potential warehouse workers  

Problem Solver: Phantom Auto of Mountain View, California 

Solution: Remotely operated forklift

It takes a lot of thinking to be a multi-dimensional supply chain operations with a direct presence in 67 countries, a global network spanning 120 countries and business rankings of No. 1 in France,  No. 6 in Europe and No. 7 worldwide. And so, it was a thinker at GEODIS who came up the idea of operating warehouse forklifts remotely.

Think about it, the thinker, who is a GEODIS manager, thought: Such an operation would: (1) reduce injuries and increase overall safety in warehouses; (2) lower the number of people physically inside warehouses to enhance worker comfort; (3) create new future-proof remote operator jobs that can be carried out within an office environment; (4) allow the hiring of individuals who may have physical disabilities restricting their use of traditional forklifts, as well as individuals from other historically underrepresented demographics; and (5) allow for recruitment from regions outside of where warehouses are located, including areas of higher unemployment.

Call that a win-win—with a win-win-win on top!

To make this happen, the GEODIS thinker took his idea to a GEODIS think tank that concluded . . . We need help. La première étape (“step one;” finally, my seventh-grade French class pays off) was to find a worthy forklift maker. Deuxième étape (step two; oui-oui!) was to locate the technological know-how to make the contraption work remotely.

For the forklift, GEODIS did not have to look far. Germany’s Linde Material Handling GmbH, a KION Group company that manufactures forklift trucks and warehouse trucks globally, has a French subsidiary called Fenwick-Linde. But for the tech, GEODIS had to look west—waaaaaay west to the U.S. West Coast, where one finds Silicon Valley and Phantom Auto.

The Fenwick forklift combined with Phantom’s secure, network-agnostic and interoperable remote operation software now enables remote workers to “drive” the vehicle, unlocking efficiency and equipment utilization gains. For example, one remote worker can operate multiple forklifts at a number of warehouses at different times of the day, all from one secure, central location. Keep in mind that giant GEODIS has warehouses all over the world.

“Phantom Auto’s technology enables dynamic balancing of workforce allocation, safer warehouses, enhanced worker well-being, and employment opportunities to those who otherwise could not physically drive forklifts,” says Stéphanie Hervé, GEODIS’ chief operating officer, Western Europe, Middle East & Africa. “This innovation will be of benefit to the wider community and indicates the future of logistics operations. We believe that technology should serve people, and that is what this partnership with Phantom Auto illustrates.”

We began this story with market research, so let us conclude with StartUs Insights’ recent report that was based on an analysis of nearly 800 startup businesses and identified a number of Industry 4.0 technological trends. The top 10 are:

artificial intelligence, 16 percent; human augmentation and enhanced reality, 13 percent; edge, fog and cloud computing, 11 percent; network and connectivity, 11 percent; advanced robotics, 10 percent; Internet of Everything, 10 percent; big data and analytics, 9 percent; 3D printing, 8 percent; security, transparency and privacy, 7 percent; and digital twin, 5 percent.

Considering that report for The International Air Cargo Association, TIACA Director General Glyn Hughes noted that each trend StartUs Insights identified affects his members. While an email he recently sent to members is strictly tailored to his industry, his words actually apply to all the companies and problem-solvers cited in this article and beyond.  

“We have all moved on and technology has been leading the way forward and will continue to do so,” Hughes writes. “Future success will be determined by those who identify, embrace and capitalize on new opportunities.

“In that regard, the air cargo industry will also need to embrace these new opportunities. Many of these are already heavily influencing air cargo operational efficiency and a number of new solutions and industry best practices have resulted. When it comes to innovation, digitalization and technological implementation . . . it is very true to say that standing still is actually moving backwards.”

ports Fuentes
Archives, Global Trade Daily, Site Selection, U.S. Ports

GLOBAL COMMERCE’S LIFEBLOOD: PORT CITY REVIEW 2021

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While maritime trade can be traced back to ancient civilizations in previous millennia, sea freight and ports have never been more important than they are today.

The lifeblood of global commerce, seaports handle almost 811 million TEUs every year, supporting industries of all shapes and sizes all over the world. Indeed, many of the United States’ maritime logistics hubs are some of the largest, their associated economic development corporations (EDCs) having helped to accelerate their growth and value to regional, national and global economies.


In this 2021 roundup of 15 U.S. port cities, we analyze the role of some of the country’s key logistics hubs—as well as the role their economic development engines play in ensuring their continual progression.

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles is arguably the West Coast’s most important intermodal transport hub, the beating heart of which is the Port of Los Angeles–a seaport covering 7,500 acres of land and water along 43 miles of waterfront. It is the nation’s No. 1 container port, with its state-of-the-art facilities seeing it move 9.2 million TEUs in 2020. Port of Los Angeles also adjoins to the Port of Long Beach, another one of the busiest seaports in the world, moving around 7.5 million TEUs every year. Both ports are supported by the efforts of the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, the regional EDC combining economic research with industry programs, workforce development, business assistance and policy changes that promote a thriving local economy, for which these two ports are vital. 

New York City, New York

New York City Economic Development Corp. (NYCEDC) is the EDC for the nation’s most highly populated city, home to more than 8 million people. A mission-driven non-profit, it aims to support the city by creating prosperity through investing in neighborhoods, building sustainably, creating workforce opportunities and advancing company growth. In achieving these goals, it works closely with the Port of New York and New Jersey. Recently, it has been helping to develop a visionary freight system, supported the major South Brooklyn Marine Terminal project and completed a 2019 survey of the NYC and NJ maritime community. “Through PortNYC and other initiatives, we’re working to ensure both the long-term health of the maritime industry in NYC and the city’s economy as a whole,” NYCEDC states.

New Orleans, Louisiana

With the simple mission of creating a region with a thriving economy and an excellent quality of life, Greater New Orleans (GNO) pursues a two-pronged strategy as the EDC for the region. This includes helping to attract, retain and develop key businesses (Business Development), and propose, promote and facilitate policies and programs that improve business conditions (Business Environment). Such efforts have assisted in securing a new ground-breaking Lineage Logistics project at the Port of New Orleans, the organization having committed $42 million to the expansion of the Jourdan Road cold-storage facility in New Orleans East in April 2021. “The cold-storage complex at Jourdan Road along the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal will grow from 160,000 square feet to 304,000 square feet,” an announcement from GNO reads.

Oakland, California

While Oakland is home to fewer than half a million people, its maritime logistics hub–Port of Oakland–is renowned as a key gateway to U.S. commerce. It oversees 1,300 acres of maritime-related facilities serving a local market of more than 14.5 million consumers, with 34 million people located within a seven-hour drive of its facilities. Supporting Port of Oakland’s thriving economic activity is the East Bay Economic Development Alliance (EDA). The two have an intertwined relationship, the EDA having previously supported harbor dredging activities in 1991 and 2009, and assisted stakeholders in resolving the transportation impacts created by the port’s growth in 2003. In 2020, it also recognized the port at its Innovation Awards for its significant contributions as a long-standing generator of jobs and economic vitality in the region.

Norfolk, Virginia

The city of Norfolk, Virginia, is home to a vibrant intermodal transport scene, in large part thanks to a formidable maritime history centered around the enormous naval base on Chesapeake Bay and the Port of Virginia. The port boasts of the largest percentage of rail arrivals and departures on the East Coast, is directly responsible for nearly 40,000 jobs, and managed 2,327 vessel calls and departures in 2019, equating to around 3 million TEUs and 55 million tons of cargo worth almost $75 billion. The Hampton Roads Economic Development Alliance (EDA) has long assisted both domestic and international firms wishing to invest in the Norfolk area, offering three lucrative tax incentives to companies using the port: The Port Volume Increase Tax Credit, Barge and Rail Use Tax Credit and International Trade Facility Tax Credit.

Savannah, Georgia

The Savannah Economic Development Authority (SEDA) is the EDC for Savannah, its goal being to help create, grow and attract new job opportunities and investment in the region. It attracts and supports a variety of organizations through customized services that include anything from infrastructure and real estate opportunities to incentives and tax abatements. Much of Savannah’s draw stems from the Port of Savannah, where 85% of the world’s top 3PLs operate in Georgia. To maintain this competitive advantage, SEDA actively supports several logistics-related projects, including the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project, the Mid-American Arc Initiative & International, and The Center of Innovation for Logistics for the state of Georgia.

Houston, Texas

Originally founded in 1840, the Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) strives to make the region the best place to live, work and build a business, serving a thousand-member companies and 7.1 million people in the 12-county Houston region. It is a fervent supporter of the Port of Houston, hosting an annual State of the Port conference, outlining the logistics hub’s performance, future growth opportunities and capital investment plans to regional economic players. The overall impact of the port on a national level includes 3.2 million jobs, $801.9 billion in economic value and more than $38.1 billion in tax revenue. “As the largest port in foreign tonnage in the nation, Port Houston is an economic engine supporting the Houston region, the state of Texas, and the nation,” GHP states. 

Tampa, Florida 

The Tampa Bay Economic Development Council (EDC) has remained the designated economic development agency for Hillsborough County for 12 years, also serving the surrounding cities of Tampa, Plant City and Temple Terrace. Currently it is delivering upon a 2020-2022 strategic action plan geared toward achieving business development, talent attraction and placemaking. As part of this vision, the EDC provides several incentives to business, creating high-wage jobs in high-value industries. In terms of its engagements with the ports, logistics and supply chain industry, it supports those organizations seeking real estate opportunities not only at the Port of Tampa Bay, but equally in Port Redwing and Port Ybor. 

Chicago, Illinois

The Windy City is extremely well connected, in large part thanks to what is North America’s largest inland port–the CenterPoint Intermodal Center. Located in the Joilet and Elwood area, it is a 6,400-acre, master-planned intermodal development which handles approximately three million TEUs every year. The site is also home to more than 30 economic powerhouse tenant companies that between them occupy over 14 million square feet of space. The Chicago Regional Growth Corporation plays a key role in supporting the city and region’s buoyant logistics activities, priding itself on a “history of working together” with key partners to developed projects leading to growth, investment and the creation of quality jobs.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The Port of Philadelphia, also known as PhilaPort, holds several impressive accolades. Not only is it the fastest growing port in the U.S., having achieved a 7% increase in container volumes in 2020. Equally, it generates roughly 55,000 jobs for the local region, handles 6.4 million metric tons annually, is the largest refrigerated port in the country and helps to generate $30.5 billion in trade every year. The Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp. (PIDC) continues to play a crucial role in helping the port to reach new heights. The city’s EDC, the PIDC has leveraged $30 billion in total investment and assisted in retaining and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs in Philadelphia since its foundation 62 years ago. The local seaport industry’s latest venture, announced March 2021, will see the development of a $23 million distribution center that is set to add more than 200,000 square feet of flexible, food-grade storage within one mile of Packer Avenue Marine Terminal.

Mobile, Alabama

The Port of Mobile is a significant contributor to the city’s economy. Indeed, the figures speak for themselves. According to the Alabama State Port Authority, its economic impact includes roughly 155,000 direct and indirect jobs, $559.3 million in direct and indirect tax impact, and a total economic value $25.4 billion. The Economic Development Partnership of Alabama (EDPA) has supported the growth of these numbers over many years, having worked to support companies compete not only locally but on a global stage. The EDPA helps various free trade zones (FTZs) to flourish while also providing tax incentives, support for startups and management of the region’s transport links that are vital to its intermodal abilities and more. 

Matagorda County, Texas

Matagorda County is privileged enough to be the home of two ports: Port of Bay City and Port of Palacios. The former has approximately 150 acres of land available for commercial development, providing access to the Colorado River Channel, while the latter equally provides opportunities and parcels for long-term lease and development. Both ports are backed by the Matagorda County EDC that provides key economic contributors with incentives including employee recruitment and training, tailored services to help locate or expand, tax abatement policies and tax-free industrial and environmental bonds.

Baltimore, Maryland

The City of Baltimore is home to one of Maryland’s four FTZs. Serving as the administrator of the FTZ is the Baltimore Development Corporation (BDC), which is  mandated to grow the city’s economy in an inclusive manner by retaining, expanding and attracting businesses and promoting investment. Port of Baltimore forms a large part of these activities, being one of the 10 busiest ports in the U.S. and serving a significant part of the East Coast. The bulk of the products that pass through the port, and indeed the FTZ, includes cars, paper and steel, with BDC itself reporting that the total value of shipments through Baltimore’s FTZ was more than $19.9 billion in 2017.

Cleveland, Ohio

The Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) is a particularly active EDC, supporting the city and its 12,000 members as a catalyst for business growth and development in its various forms. It works closely with the Port of Cleveland, the latter responsible for more than 20,000 jobs and $3.5 billion in annual economic activity tied to the 13 million tons of cargo it handles per annum. With support from GCP, the port announced in May 2012 that it would be moving ahead with $20 million in projects that will include dock improvements, main gate enhancements and the construction of a state-of-the-art customs processing facility. This latest investment follows the completion of a $1.1 million cruise terminal processing center and $10.36 million extension of the Cleveland Bulk Terminal iron ore tunnel in 2020, the latter anticipated to bring another 1 million tons of cargo each year to the port. 

Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is an interesting proposition, being the home of one of the country’s most active intermodal freight hubs and the thriving Port of Memphis, despite being in a landlocked state in Tennessee. The port serves 150 industries and handles a rich variety of goods, from petroleum and cement to grain and steel. It is able to connect these vital goods with the rest of the country thanks to the Mississippi River, five Class 1 railroads, major north-south and east-west interstate highways, and the nearby airport. Such is its critical role in accelerating economic activity, it carries an annual economic impact of more than $9.2 billion. Created in 2011, the Economic and Development Growth Engine (EDGE) for Memphis and Shelby County helps to support the region’s buoyant logistics industry, managing its foreign trade zone, providing business loans and tax incentives, and overseeing the Memphis Port Commission. 

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BREAKBULK IS BACK: AFTER PANDEMIC HICCUP, BREAKBULK AMERICAS RETURNS TO HOUSTON

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After missing 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Breakbulk Americas is returning in September.

“This event from September 28 to 30 is all about getting together as an industry after a very long two-year break,” says Leslie Meredith, Marketing and Media Director for the event. “Breakbulk Americas is the first Breakbulk event to return to the market post-pandemic. We are working very closely with the City of Houston and the George R. Brown Convention Center to make sure that this is a safe experience for all.”

You might say Breakbulk Americas has gotten a shot in the arm.

“Fortunately, the vaccine rollout has been very efficient and Americans are able to move around with a great deal of freedom, which bodes well for the event this fall,” Meredith says.


 

Safety for all involved is paramount for event organizers, Hyve Group. In January, Visit Houston, the city’s entity that governs events and tourism, outlined its exceptional safety measures that will be in place for the event along with other improvements to support the region’s top event for the project cargo and breakbulk industry.

John Solis, senior vice president of Sales & Client Services at the George R. Brown Convention Center (a.k.a. GRB Center), said in a communiqué to Breakbulk, the convention center has made significant enhancements to its facility. The GRB Center is the first convention center in the world to deploy the Integrated Viral Protection (IVP) system, which deploys biodefense filtration technology proven to eliminate SARS-CoV-2 (99.999%) and other airborne contaminants. 

In addition, a new virtual studio inside the GRB Center will provide flexibility to maximize opportunities for hybrid experiences. This feature will allow Breakbulk to host remote expert speakers should that be necessary due to travel or budgetary considerations, along with its in-person industry panelists. 

A third enhancement will be permanent thermal scanning stations located at all entry points that can process up to 100 guests per minute, ensuring no delays to access the exhibition floor.

The new features complement Hyve’s own safe and secure program that is applied to all Hyve events.

At the last Breakbulk Americas convention in 2019, more than 4,800 attended, which has made Breakbulk Americas the region’s largest and most influential event across Canada, the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean for all those involved in the project cargo and breakbulk community.

Meredith said organizers have “some exciting plans for Breakbulk Americas to fuel networking for new business opportunities, which has never been more important. The traditional welcome reception held Tuesday evening at the GRB Center will embrace the spirit of Texas as thousands gather for the Reunion at the Breakbulk Saloon. The entire exhibition floor will be decked out Western-style with ‘watering holes’ (themed bars) throughout the hall.”

Leading up to the reunion will be an exclusive Executive Summit for C-level exhibitors and shippers to tackle post-COVID recovery together. On a lighter note, all attendees are invited to participate in the 2021 Maritime Workers Emergency Medical Fund Golf Tournament at the Hermann Park Golf Course in Houston.

The first full day of the exhibition and conference begins on Wednesday, Sept. 29, continuing through Thursday afternoon, Sept. 30. On the main stage, industry leaders will present a wide range of insights on the evolving impact of COVID on business and projects, President Biden’s infrastructure plan, U.S. offshore wind project opportunities, the carrier sector, women in breakbulk on tackling the imposter syndrome and the effects, both long term and short term, of the greening of the oil and gas supply chain.

Meredith said that “an integral part of Breakbulk Americas is contributing to the next generation of transport and logistics professionals, which we do through the Jerry Nagel Education Day and guided tours of the exhibition floor. With strong ties to Texas universities and beyond, Breakbulk typically hosts around 200 students and their instructors at this introduction to the industry and to its leaders. Education Day will be held on Thursday.”

(Agenda: https://americas.breakbulk.com/business-programme.)

Breakbulk Americas attracts new exhibitors annually, but there are many who make it a “must” event, like the Port of Baltimore.

“Breakbulk cargo is a very important subject matter for the Port of Baltimore and Breakbulk Americas is a must-attend conference,” says William Doyle, executive director of the Maryland Port Administration. “Last year, Baltimore handled more than 173,000 tons of breakbulk cargo, which was a 23% jump over 2019 and so far this year we are up 4% over last year.”

Doyle continued: “We regularly handle power and heat steam recovery generation machinery, wind turbine equipment, transformers and other energy production equipment. We also serve as a major gateway for breakbulk premium fresh fiber paperboards, including folding boxboards, food service boards and white kraftliners, especially since the e-commerce boom.” 

He noted that his facility’s “excellent geographic location to states like Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio allows Baltimore to be an ideal port for handling breakbulk cargo destined to those states. Baltimore also has two, heavy-lift cranes and direct-to-rail capabilities. The Breakbulk Americas conference allows us to meet and connect with our current breakbulk customers and seek out opportunities with prospective customers. We will have our breakbulk sales representative Rick Pagley at the event.”

For Barnhart Crane and Rigging in Fairhope, Alabama, “there is really no greater opportunity to connect and network with those involved in the heavy transport and project cargo industry than Breakbulk Americas,” says Chris Teague, Barhart’s director of Marketing. “Barnhart has been committed to this event for years because it has always borne fruit. As a national company with 50 locations across the U.S., Breakbulk is the one event for which our sales team can gather and engage with customers, vendors and key influencers within the industry. Year-after-year, all Breakbulk Americas attendees and exhibitors can always be guaranteed to interact with the (pun intended) movers and shakers in the industry.” 

Ken Carey, manager, Business Development, with the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp., says “Highway H2O has been attending this event for many years. We find the quality of the event, the attendees and the other exhibitors to be world-class.”

Carey adds that, “Given the bi-national scope of the Seaway-Great Lakes transportation system, we also enjoy the opportunity to meet new contacts and expand on relationships we have developed over the years.”

Convention exhibitor Port Tampa Bay looks at Breakbulk Americas as key to its business, according to Wade Elliott, the port’s vice president of Business Development. 

“We are Florida’s largest port for steel cargo and have been receiving increasing volumes of breakbulk lumber, thanks to a new service which was launched last year,” Elliott says. “Breakbulk Americas provides a great networking forum for us to meet with the carriers, importers and exporters and coordinate plans to serve our growing market, in particular the Tampa/Orlando I-4 Corridor, Florida’s distribution hub.”

Annual Breakbulk Americas attendee Wolfe House Movers/Buckingham Heavy Transport has between two and four company members at the event, says Anna Brovont, the Bernville, Pennsylvania, company’s marketing administrator.

“As a heavy haul transporter, we have found that Breakbulk Americas has been integral to our business in bringing us an opportunity to discuss their interests with our clients, expand our networks and stay abreast of developments within the industry,” she says. “We do some business but use Breakbulk Americas primarily to touch base with clients.”

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GEORGIA PORTS AUTHORITY INVESTS IN THE FUTURE

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Capacity expansion, cranes and infrastructure are the focuses for Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) in FY2021. The GPA announced the official approval of $305 million in projects to increase overall TEU capacity for the Port of Savannah from 6 million to 7.4 million. 

The goal of meeting increased cargo volume includes support from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers through the deepening of the Savannah Harbor. Additional projects include the re-purposing of property on Garden City Terminal and doubling GPA’s rail lift capacity to 2 million TEUs per year through commissioning the second set of nine new working tracks at the Mason Mega Rail terminal. 

The GPA has begun refurbishing Berth 1 at the Garden City Terminal to increase the dock capacity to include four 16,000-TEU vessels–the largest class of container ships currently serving the U.S. East Coast–as well as three additional ships. The greater efficiency possible when working one large vessel compared to multiple smaller ones will increase Savannah’s overall berth capacity and velocity of vessel service. This renovation alone will add 1 million TEUs per year of capacity for the berth. 

The most recent additions completed by the GPA include the Appalachian Regional Port’s addition of six container storage bays, bringing the TEU slots to 390 for increased demand at the inland terminal and an overall capacity increase of 25,000 TEUs annually. 

In February, the GPA commissioned an additional 6,000 TEUs of grounded container slots at Savannah’s Ocean Terminal, including space for dry and refrigerated containers. The expanded container yard is served by six rubber-tired gantry cranes, for an increased capacity there of 210,000 TEUs annually.

At Garden City Terminal, the GPA added six new ship-to-shore cranes in FY2020 and 20 new rubber-tired gantry cranes for a total of 172. Also at Garden City Terminal, the GPA brought online new container stacks for berths 7, 8 and 9, increasing Savannah’s annual capacity by 400,000 TEUs.

Looking ahead to the future, the GPA has purchased 145 acres adjacent to the Mason Mega Rail Terminal. GPA is developing 92 of those acres for an additional 750,000 annual TEU capacity within the next two years. 

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BIG SHIP READY: COSCO Shipping is Among Container Lines that Call Port Tampa Bay

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Port Tampa Bay has emerged as Florida’s preferred new supply chain solution for containerized cargo. The incorporation of direct Asia container services and new connections to Mexico and Central America have significantly enhanced the port’s role in serving the state’s largest and fastest-growing market—the Tampa Bay/Orlando 1-4 Corridor, Florida’s distribution hub. 

The Central Florida region has boomed into one of the hottest industrial real estate markets in the country, becoming the state’s hub for distribution, logistics and manufacturing. As the “front door to the I-4,” Port Tampa Bay is well situated to help businesses capitalize on the growth of the region, which is driving demand for retail, e-commerce, food & beverage, energy products and construction & building materials. 

New tenant Celadon will soon break ground on a paper fiber manufacturing plant that aims to generate up to 80,000 TEUs/year for export to Asia. The port recently expanded terminal capacity with additional paved storage and extended berths to keep pace with continued growth. Part of the expansion includes additional cranes and equipment, and new trans-load warehouse facilities.

The Port recently welcomed CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen, OOCL, Maersk and Sealand to their family of container lines offering an array of new services, joining established carrier partners ZIM, MSC and Seatrade. 

Expanded connections serving trade with Mexico offer more efficient supply chain solutions versus the traditional costly and congested overland routes. Work Cat recently began offering a weekly Brownsville Texas-Port Tampa Bay container-on-barge services using 53-foot containers, which is especially attractive for customers used to receiving deliveries by truck from Monterrey and Northern Mexico. ZIM recently launched a weekly Altamira-Port Tampa Bay service, the Mexico Tampa Shuttle, with Kuehne and Nagel as partners on the new service, promoted as the Blue Marlin Express. Seatrade’s SeacatLine also increased the frequency of its Costa Rica service to weekly.

Importers and exporters in Florida’s distribution hub now enjoy significant savings as truckers make as many as three to four roundtrip deliveries per day from Port Tampa Bay to their distribution centers. Partners such as container terminal operator Ports America and cold storage specialist Port Logistics Refrigerated Services have made it possible for Port Tampa Bay to expand infrastructure and capacity to ensure it is well-positioned for continued growth.

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PROJECTING GOOD THINGS FOR THE PORT OF GREATER BATON ROUGE

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Despite a worldwide pandemic, three successful projects were completed at the Port of Greater Baton Rouge in 2020: a major expansion of shipping container storage capacity; delivery of a custom-made, deep-reach stacker for transloading containers into and out of barges; and the opening of a $22 million railcar chambering yard.

Last year, more than 16,000 containers moved through the Louisiana port, more than double the volume of 2017 when the service began. In the process, SEACOR AMH LLC transports empty containers from Memphis to the Port of Greater Baton Rouge via barge to be loaded with resin from area plants, and then moves the loaded barges downriver to the Port of New Orleans for international transport. 

This rapid increase in container volumes prompted the Port of Greater Baton Rouge to increase the size of its container storage facility. The $5 million expansion created nearly 4 acres of additional paved container storage capacity and gave the port the ability to store about 2,000 containers.

A 20% efficiency gain in its container operations was just one positive outcome of the port’s new, deep-reach container stacker known as The Big Red Beast. With its telescopic boom for stacking four containers high, shorter loading and unloading times have helped meet the increasing demand for container shipping services for area customers in the petrochemical industry sector, says Port Executive Director Jay Hardman. Financed almost 100% by a Maritime Administration grant, the one-of-a-kind Beast was designed and manufactured specifically for the port by Taylor Machine Works of Louisville, Mississippi.

The railcar chambering yard was completed in 2020 on port property south of the Intracoastal Waterway. The yard facilitates the storage of railcars and expedites the arrival and departure of unit trains of 80 or more railcars into and out of the port. The chambering yard currently facilitates delivery by rail of wood pellets to tenant Drax Biomass for export overseas. Grön Fuels, which recently announced plans to build a $9.2 billion renewable fuels complex at the site, is also planning the utilization of the rail chambering yard.

The Port of Greater Baton Rouge is the head of deepwater navigation on the Mississippi River; a 45-foot shipping channel to the mouth of the Mississippi River is maintained by the U.S. Corps of Engineers. The port’s deepwater terminal on the Mississippi is currently capable of docking three deep-draft vessels simultaneously. 

 

Port leadership recently applied to the Louisiana Department of Transportation Port Construction and Development Priority Program (PCDPP) for a $15 million rehabilitation/expansion of its “Northern Berth” on the Mississippi River that would allow for the Port of Greater Baton Rouge to have a fourth deep draft vessel berth at its northernmost point.

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PORT OF LONG BEACH PLAYS THE LONG GAME

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The Port of Long Beach has become a global leader in operational excellence, outstanding customer service, moving cargo with reliability, speed, and efficiency making it the premier U.S. gateway for trans-Pacific trade. 

As the second-busiest container seaport, the Port of Long Beach handles trade valued at $200 billion annually and supports 2.6 million trade-related jobs across the United States. This includes 575,000 in Southern California and one in five jobs in Long Beach, which is southwest of Los Angeles. 

Spanning across 3,200 acres with 31 miles of waterfront, 10 piers, 66 post-Panamax cranes, and amongst the deepest berths in the country, the port’s world-class facilities can accommodate the largest shipping vessels in the world. Goods moving through the port originate in or are destined for every U.S. congressional district. 

With a keen eye toward building a successful and sustainable future, the port is pursuing long-term capital improvement projects. In 2020, the port opened a new bridge built for the modern era of shipping and goods movement. This year, the port will complete the final phase of the world’s most technologically advanced container terminal, the Long Beach Container Terminal at Middle Harbor.

In the next 10 years, the port plans to invest $1.7 billion in modernization to further prepare for the demands of global trade. The strategy includes investing $1 billion in on-dock rail projects, aimed at substantially increasing reliability, adding capacity, strengthening competitiveness, improving speed-to-market, and allowing for the rapid movement of cargo throughout the harbor.

The Port of Long Beach operates Foreign Trade Zone 50 that lessens the impact of tariffs and eliminates Customs clearance delays by having shipments delivered directly to qualifying businesses within Orange County and parts of San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties.

Additionally, the port is proactively working to handle the ongoing surge in cargo shipments brought on by consumer demand for imports. Among other measures, the port has opened STOR (Short-Term Overflow Resource yard) to provide extra near-dock space to help importers and exporters cope with the cargo volume. 

The Business Recovery Task Force, which was established just over a year ago, serves as a key internal group to work with customers, industry partners, labor and government agencies to ensure terminal and supply chain operations continue without disruption.

Added investigations for locating funds to enable a 24/7 supply chain will put the port on the same footing here in the U.S. as they are in Asia and parts of Europe.

Customers choose the Port of Long Beach for the most dependable, cost-effective and fastest delivery of goods in the world, along with the strong relationships it maintains with industry, community, environmental advocates and partner agencies. In 2020, industry leaders named it “The Best West Coast Seaport in North America” for the second consecutive year. 

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LESSON FOR THE DAY: ONE PROFESSIONAL’S CAREER PATH 

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In 2019, more than 11 billion tons of cargo were shipped internationally, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and the dollar value of global trade that same year was approximately $19 trillion (U.S.).

The logistics required in the transshipment of products by sea, air, rail and truck are enormous, and the efficiency of the multitude of supply chains is equally as vital. Developing the logistical programs and building supply chain models require people with in-depth training in these sectors of cargo movement.

Patrick Bohan has been involved in supply management and logistics for several years. The director of Business Development with the Halifax Port Authority in Nova Scotia, Canada, Bohan says he would highly recommend a career path in these specific sectors.

He said his work in the area of supply chains has been “fascinating” and states that it is the supply chains that “make the world go around every day.”

Approximately 80% of global trade moves by ship and “even through the global pandemic, these supply chains had to keep functioning and were more important than ever,” Bohan stressed.

He said that, thankfully, with the necessary technology, “we had remote work capabilities and we had the devices we could get the work done from just about anywhere and that was important to keep lot of things going.”

After earning a business degree from Western University in London, Ontario, Bohan’s “first employee experience was in and around transportation,” he says. I knew how to use Excel (Microsoft) and spreadsheets plus other software programs.” 

With this background, he could see value in his training and felt “maybe I could work in this industry for the long term.” Bohan saw an opportunity in the transportation field. “To be quite honest,” trade globally was growing and getting more sophisticated in terms of overseas trade, as both inbound and outbound supply chains were being “connected around the world,” he said.

He started working in transportation in the 1990s and as his experience began to develop, he wanted to get more into logistics and supply chain management. So, he felt the best way for him to accomplish that was to become a Certified Logistics Professional (CCLP) through the Canadian Institute of Traffic and Transportation (CITT).

Bohan worked on correspondence courses at night and during weekends and studied “basically all different modes of transportation and warehousing and distribution topics. When I completed the courses and had five years of full-time work experience, I qualified for the designation and every year there is some upkeep required.

“That was my first specific training in this field and it has served me well, to move up the learning curve in an efficient way and to get some clues about where the world is going in that industry,” he said.

Although his career was moving forward, Bohan said the shipping industry and his specific areas of supply chain and logistics are always evolving and changing and a mid-career refresher was important in his line of work.

“I had been out of school for about 10 years and working and by going back and doing my MBA [Master of Business Administration in International Business at Saint Mary’s University, Halifax], I had freshened up on the changes that had taken place in the world.”

The MBA program proved invaluable to Bohan because it had “an international project, too, which I was able to complete using work-related concepts.” He said the research project was related to his work at the port and involved some trade with China and Vietnam. “It was timely because in 2005,” when Bohan was doing his MBA, China and Vietnam “were coming into their own and the port had a lot of interest with what was going on in that part of the world with Asian trade.” 

He looked at the Asian market from the perspective of how this industry would change some of the trade patterns as well as logistics and supply chain habits.

Bohan, who was involved in the early stages of building Asian trade through Halifax, actually went to China and Vietnam for two weeks as part of his MBA project.

“Southeast Asia seemed to be where the action was and the MBA project certainly helped,” he said. It was his first trip to those countries and it provided him with “good, direct connections” with the work he was doing at the port.

In a further comment on a refresher program for mid-career professionals, Bohan also suggested “some kind of specialized certification in your field.” He said an MBA or a certification program would provide “the best path to discover things that may have changed from early career to mid-career.” 

With the shipping industry and supply chains constantly evolving, updating in mid-career is also important in dealing with new technology and data streams, things which increase efficiency of supply chains, said Bohan. Early in his career, he had some ideas of where the world was headed based on training and technology and how it could be adapted to make supply chains more efficient. 

Looking into the future now, Bohan said there are discussions about artificial intelligence and other technologies, which seem to be moving to the next level where the machines might actually learn logistics and supply-chain models and update them.

So, he stressed, “I think it is very important for people in mid-career to touch base with the technology, get comfortable with it and find out what it can do so they don’t feel the world is passing them by.”

And in the shipping industry in particular, with the constant introduction of larger container ships, improved technology is vital with changing supply chains and logistics in handling cargo.

“Without technology, it would be impossible to imagine if you had a 24,000 TEU ship and had to keep track of every single container plus the speed of planning, the arrivals, getting them unloaded to rail or truck and the transshipment to many locations,” Bohan says. “Without technology, can you imagine the volume of paper?”

In his work at the Port of Halifax, Bohan has occasionally been invited to speak to high school students about the port, his role there and how things get from one side of the world to the provincial capital of Nova Scotia. 

He believes that speaking to these students—or even providing business programs on supply chains and logistics as part of a curriculum—would be beneficial “because so many jobs and careers are somewhat related to supply chain.” Having their young eyes opened to the field early, Bohan added, may be advantageous compared to having to make last-minute decisions later in life.

WHAT THEY’RE LOOKING FOR

People looking to the transportation industry for a career with a focus on logistics and supply-chain management should know that many employers are looking for specific things from new recruits.

Take enVista, for example. Based in Kansas City, Missouri, the global software, consulting and managed services provider was founded by supply chain and technology experts in response to market demand for skilled consulting services.

“In terms of training for labor-management consulting roles, we do have a multi-phase training approach that consists of on-the-job training, introductory classroom training and specific vendor application training, i.e. Blue Yonder, Korber, etc.,” says enVista Vice President Tom Stretar. 

“In addition, for warehouse management, labor management, and transportation consulting roles, the common college degrees we keep an eye out for include, Supply Chain Management (BA/BS or MBA) and Industrial Engineering or equivalent type engineering degrees, like Mechanical Engineering (BS), Computer Science Engineering (BA/BS) and Data/Business Analytics (BA/BS).”

First published by Reuters