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Maritime Transport Sector. Infrastructure Imperatives June 2006, CSME . Roland Malins-Smith. Dominant influence on infrastructure has been containerization. Origins of containerization – trucker Malcolm McLean, 1956 Precipitated globalization by reducing the cost of maritime transport
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Maritime Transport Sector Infrastructure Imperatives June 2006, CSME Roland Malins-Smith
Dominant influence on infrastructure has been containerization • Origins of containerization – trucker Malcolm McLean, 1956 • Precipitated globalization by reducing the cost of maritime transport • Simple, effective way of moving goods which protects them, speeds up handling, permits inter-modal exchange, permits economies of scale with ships, speeds up delivery time, reduces inventories and costs • The end game – dramatically increase port productivity
Impact of containerization • Introduced a new class of vessels – the container ship • Introduced new handling methods & organization at ports • Dictates changes in port layout • Requires investment in specialized port equipment • Increases labor productivity, leads to reduction in work force Today we take containerization for granted, but it has been quite a change for the Caribbean, and the adjustment of our port infrastructure is an ongoing exercise
Caribbean network of mainline and feeder services developing • Larger ships being used from Far East, Europe • Smaller ships moving containers from: • Florida • Kingston Jamaica • Manzanillo Panama • Cartagena Colombia • Freeport Bahamas • Caucedo Dominican Republic • And secondary transshipment points such as • San Juan, St Croix, Point Lisas, Port of Spain, Vieux Fort
Transshipment is major business for ports such as Kingston • Will move over 2.2 million teus in 2006 • Now investing US$250 million to grow to 3.2 million within 4 years • Expects to have 2,100 ship calls this year • Building another 475 meters of berth and additional 161 acres of container terminal space
For Transshipment ports, success requires high productivity and low unit costs, achieved with: • Measured investment in berths and terminal storage areas • Container gantry cranes, RTGs, straddle carriers, container stackers, yard trucks and chassis • Effective and experienced management • Industry specific software • Motivated work force, stable labor environment. Objective: Rates of 25-35 moves per gang hour
State of port infrastructure in CSME a mixed bag – difficult to generalize • Some ports such as Kingston have spent considerable sums, making rapid progress • Most Caribbean ports have modest programs for acquiring / using container handling equipment • Some are in urgent need of berth renovation and expansion, dredging and terminal construction – Paramaribo and Georgetown Given state of infrastructure, fair to say that port productivity can be improved with further investment and with pro-active management of existing facilities
From operator’s standpoint, infrastructure issues: • Berthing competition between cruise and container ships • Where volume warrants, investment in cranes can intensify use of existing facilities • Insufficiency of “moving” equipment between ship and storage area • Preventive maintenance programs preserve equipment • Communications equipment sometimes lacking • Organization of container storage areas and pre-staging to increase productivity • Use of available software • Rationalization of working hours, gang size, charges • Container turn time, demurrage, storage regimes • Training to avoid poor handling methods, improve safety • Container truck scales increasingly useful Effective and experienced management the key element
Ships and services – no shortage of opportunities for CSME • As a by-product of containerization, comprehensive regional network of services exists • Most if not all ports linked with day of the week sailings • Over 15 container shipping lines offer regular services • 6 actively canvass intra-regional business • Tropical Shipping – www.Tropical.com • Bernuth Marine – www.Bernuth.com • Seaboard Marine – www.Seaboardmarine.com • Crowley Liner Services – www.Crowley.com • CMA/CGM – www.cma.cgm.com • Seafreight Line – www.seafreightagencies.com Current schedules can be found on the websites. CSME exporters who generate container size shipments are familiar with these services
Some issues remain • Handling cost, a function of productivity, remain relatively high, for reasons already given • Minimum costs and charges associated with container activity make LCL shipments very expensive • For primary products, refrigerated services usually come in 40’ container sizes • Knowledge of existing services and opportunities could be improved