Ships sitting idle in Singapore
What does declining world trade look like? As trade volume falls, carriers are reducing capacity by idling their ships hoping to minimize losses. These photos taken over Singapore illustrate the cargo ship parking lot that results.
Ships sit idle in Singapore
Choosing the right container service for your exports can take a little research and some of the lesser known niche shipping lines may offer better or faster service than some of their larger competition. If you’re shipping to Turkey, here’s one to consider: Turkon America Line, offering weekly sailings between the US and Turkey with quick transit times.
Turkon America Line is primarily a standard container service. They also have specialized equipment including refrigerated containers, flatracks and open tops. [click to continue…]
What is a Marine Surveyor and what role do they play in International Shipping?
Marine Surveyors are third parties hired to ensure a smooth and safe movement of goods. A surveyor can observe and document many different aspects of your shipment and more importantly they can protect your interests should any legal disputes arise.
Several types of surveys I have found useful are:
If you hire a surveyor, ask for a formal survey report upon completion of the job so you have all the details regarding your shipment. The final report should include pictures and outline any concerns or problems encountered. Surveyors will also make recommendations if any issues arise, which helps avoid problems with future shipments.
Costs for surveying are calculated using a base rate plus travel expenses.
Surveyors are not usually engaged for small or routine shipments but any time the size, value or complexity rises or timeliness is very important, using a surveyor can be a very wise investment, especially if any problems arise along the way.
Do you ship to or from China? There are new customs procedures that can prevent the loading or offloading of your cargo.
On January 1st, 2009 a new regulation for Advance Manifest Transmission called “China Customs Advance Manifest” (CCAM) takes effect. This regulation applies to all import, export and transshipped cargo via any China Mainland port or airport.
CCAM applies to all modes of transport (Ocean, Air, Road and Rail) though Rail and Road implementation will be delayed until 2010. Regulations at this time do not include shipments into or out of Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, only the People’s Republic of China. [click to continue…]
The State Department has adopted a policy of “denial with certain exceptions” regarding arms exports for the security firm EP Investments, LLC or EPI, (a/k/a Blackwater). While the Department recognizes Blackwater’s recent creation of its Export Compliance Committee and will work with them allowing certain exceptions to be made, the “presumption of denial” is necessary to provide the U.S. Government with assurance that EPI is both capable and willing to comply with the AECA (Arms Export Control Act) and ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) and will do so.
Given Blackwater’s sometimes high profile activities around the world, this new policy seems geared toward making certain the company operates within the applicable laws. The policy does state exports may still take place under certain conditions with approval on a case by case basis as long as specific procedures are followed which are carefully outlined.
Link: Source
Link: Blackwater Export Compliance Committee
The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are instituting a Clean Trucks Program to improve the port environment. JCPenny and Pacer have begun taking steps to comply with the program with delivery of clean diesel Kenworth tractors to replace older trucks in their fleets. If you operate trucks around these terminals, you need to be aware of the details of the program and begin your transition as older trucks will over time be progressively banned from entering the port area.
Press release follows:
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. and PDS Trucking, Inc., a subsidiary of Pacer Distribution Services, Inc., have taken a major step toward achieving their goal to convert 100 percent of the truck fleet handling JCPenney imports at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to low-emissions, clean-diesel technology. The companies announced today the delivery of more than 20 new Kenworth T-800 tractors that will replace aging diesel trucks currently in use by independent owner-operators in Pacer’s port network.
“We’re committed to clearing the air around the ports by putting clean trucks on the road as quickly as we can,” said Marie Lacertosa, senior vice president and director of logistics for JCPenney. “This fleet conversion demonstrates that the private sector is capable of implementing sustainable, long-term solutions to port environmental issues that also preserve jobs and maintain the efficient flow of goods.”
Kent Prokop, president of PDS Trucking, added: “We are very pleased to be supporting our customer JCPenney and the Coalition for Responsible Transportation (CRT) in their efforts to reduce emissions by adding clean trucks to our owner-operator fleet. Pacer will be taking delivery of up to 230 of these trucks by early 2009.”
As members of CRT, JCPenney and Pacer have committed to sponsoring the fleet conversion to support the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports’ 2012 air quality goals. The companies expect the fleet hauling JCPenney merchandise to meet the ports’ emissions goals by early 2009, well ahead of the ports’ deadlines, while also helping to preserve the livelihoods of independent owner-operators in the port trucking community.
The voluntary truck replacement program is based on a leasing model providing owner-operators with new, clean trucks through a private-sector financial arrangement. The financing model represents an innovative and cost-effective way for the private sector to meet recently adopted goals for the retirement of pre-2007 diesel trucks at the Ports of LA and Long Beach.
Independent owner-operators will begin using the trucks in early December to move containers of JCPenney merchandise out of the ports, where a substantial portion of the retailer’s apparel, home furnishings, footwear and accessories arrive from the Asia-Pacific region. The new T-800 trucks, with a 38-inch Aero sleeper, are powered by a Cummins ISX clean-diesel engine capable of operating on ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuel or B20 biodiesel. Each clean-diesel truck with the Cummins ISX engine reduces nitrogen oxide emissions by 78 percent and particulate matter emissions by 90 percent compared with a typical truck it replaces.
The recent dramatic rise in piracy in many locations around the world has prompted Maersk to re-route part of its fleet to avoid the Gulf of Aden, a particular hot spot, and seek alternative routing south of the Cape of Good Hope and east of Madagascar. This will primarily affect their tanker operations, though one would expect all shipping routes to be examined for potential risk.
In order to continuously ensure the safety of our crews as well as vessels and cargo, A.P. Moller – Maersk has updated the policy for vessels entering the Gulf of Aden and off the coast of East Africa. The update is a consequence of the recent development in piracy hijackings in the area.
Vessels without adequate speed or freeboard will for the time being avoid the Gulf of Aden and seek alternative routing south of the Cape of Good Hope and east of Madagascar. However, based upon availability of escorts these vessels may join naval convoy transit in the Gulf of Aden.
“The policy change will primarily impact our tanker vessels. Only three container vessels will be affected and we expect to further limit the impact by redeployment.
In general and for vessels entering the Gulf of Aden, we have safety and security procedures in place. We continue to monitor the situation and regularly update our procedures and policies.
We believe that piracy in the Gulf of Aden is a threat to important international trade lanes and therefore an international security issue. It must be addressed by relevant authorities and the international community. It is not a problem that A.P. Moller – Maersk or the shipping industry can solve alone”, says Søren Skou, partner and member of the Executive Board in A.P. Moller – Maersk.
This is probably not the last we’ll see of shipping companies adapting to the pirate’s activities.
Link: Maersk
The Transportation Workers Identification Credential program is running into technical problems. According to a report from the National Maritime Security Advisory Committee’s TWIC Working Group, the biometric ID card is plagued with slow delivery time, inability of scanners to record fingerprints, incorrect information on the card, darkened photos, expiration date errors, and security features failing to print.
Applicants report waiting for hours at enrollment centers and they are often required to make multiple visits. The TWIC website has had maintenance issues, navigation issues, password problems and incorrect information.
Port workers initially were supposed to begin using their cards for entry to secure port facilities by September, but the deadline was pushed back to April 2009 for much of the country.
Link: Federal Computer Week
Link: TWIC Program