NEWS\\\


Port of Baltimore’s rebound from COVID-19 cargo lows continues with impressive November


Significant gains in cargo commodity


volumes


continued in November at the Port of Baltimore compared to lows during the COVID-19 emergency.


General categories cargo,


containers and roll on/roll off (farm and construction equipment)


each


posted double-digit gains for the fifth consecutive month, while autos/light trucks had a triple-digit increase for the fourth straight month compared to lows during the early months of the pandemic. The November 2020 figure


for containers represents a 11% increase compared to


November 2019 and represents the second consecutive month for a year-over-year gain since the pandemic began. The figure for general cargo is a year-over-year increase of 4.1% compared to November 2019, also the second consecutive month for this growth. The port’s recent volume includes 13 “ad hoc” ship calls since mid- July totaling nearly 18,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit (TEU) containers. Ad hoc ships are vessels that were diverted to Baltimore that were not on a regularly scheduled service. One of the emerging trends for container cargo during the


News Roundup


ITS has launched “FLATBED.ONE”, a pricing portal that provides instant flatbed or stepdeck rates to/from anywhere in the US. This means shippers can quickly receive full/partial rates and book trucks. This system will speed up the process of determining shipping costs and securing a truck to move the shipment. Shippers transporting machinery, equipment, building products, steel, and other items can save on shipping costs with instant competitive market rates.


Forward Air Corp. is executing a growth strategy that involves organic infrastructure investments such as its ongoing LTL network expansion, as well as inorganic investments, including acquisitions of complementary businesses. Forward announced that it will bring its expedited LTL service to California’s Inland Empire region.


Tyrata, Inc., a tire sensor and data management company, announces Tyrata.io, a cloud-based, comprehensive data portal for its IntelliTread™ tire tread monitoring products. The system fully automates tread depth measurements and analytics needed for efficient tire-management and safe vehicle operation. The solution has no hardware cost and is deployed within hours with no impact to current fleet operations.


The Containerization & Intermodal Institute (CII) is pleased to announce the appointment of Randy Bayles, Group Manager, Ports at Norfolk Southern Corporation, to its Board of Directors for a three-year term.


Carrier Logistics Inc., veteran providers of freight management software for Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) fleets, today reported that a growing number of LTL carriers, including NJ-based PavXpress, have adopted its FACTS™ transportation and freight management system in 2020, supporting a trend that fleets are investing in critical technologies that improve operations.


Cardinal Logistics Management Corp. has acquired last- mile delivery specialist NRX Logistics. The deal doubles the number of final-mile deliveries that Cardinal will handle annually – from 550,000 to 1.1 million – and substantially upgrades its delivery proficiency in the furniture, appliance, bedding and exercise equipment categories.


Road & Rail


Towering new cranes are com- ing to the Port of Oakland to handle the massive ships call- ing the seaport. These new cranes will be the tallest ever at Oakland, and rank among the largest in the U.S. Stevedoring Services of


America (SSA) is investing in the three giant cranes for its marine terminal at Oakland


International Container Termi- nal - OICT. The huge container cranes are coming on a ship that is designed to accommo- date these enormous work- horses of the maritime indus- try.


SSA ordered the cranes from


Shanghai-based ZPMC. They are expected to arrive at the end of this month.


“Taller cranes are needed


for efficiently handling cargo that arrives on ultra-large con- tainer ships,” said SSA Contain- ers President Edward DeNi- ke. “This new infrastructure is a commitment to the Port that we will continue our maritime business at Oakland well into the future.” According to SSA, its new


cranes will have a liſt height of 174 feet above the dock. They will be able to reach 225 feet across a ship’s deck. When the crane booms are in the raised position, they will soar more than 400 feet above the wharf. SSA operates 10 cranes at OICT. The three older cranes will be removed from the termi- nal when the new ones arrive.


Ceres Terminals, Houston Terminal officially opens new empty container yard facility


Ceres Terminals Inc. has opened its new Empty Contain- er Yard Facility in Port Houston. It is operated by joint venture, Houston Terminal, LLC. The new facility is located inside the Port Houston’s Bayport Contain- er Terminal. Houston Terminals’ Empty


Container Yard Facility is 26 acres and will handle empty


Port of LA to reward


container terminals for higher truck productivity


The Port of Los Angeles through


and more its


is


launching a new incentive program to move trucks faster


terminals.


efficiently The


port’s Truck Turn-Time and Dual-Transaction Incentive


Programs offer terminal operators two ways to earn financial rewards: one for shortening the time it takes to process


trucks dropping off


and/or picking up cargo, and the other for trucks handling both


transactions in the same trip. “These best practices


are needed now more than ever to relieve pressure on the supply chain due to the ongoing surge,” said Port Executive Director Gene Seroka. “Ports are


containers for 2M partners, MSC, Maersk, and others. The facility offers all services to ac- commodate customer require- ments such as empty container storage, container maintenance and repair, container exami- nation, container stuffing and stripping, all done with modern equipment and 24/7 availability of professional staff.


more fluid when trucks move quickly in and out of the gates and more productive when a truck delivers one container and leaves with another in a single trip. We’re going to reward terminals for better performance.” Drayage trucks


handle approximately three- quarters of all import and export containers moving through the Port. In recent months, imports have dominated the


6 >>


pandemic has been business and consumer


reliance on


e-commerce, and the port’s growth in container volumes reflects this trend. “The Port of Baltimore is


well-equipped to handle the rise in e-commerce because of the number of distribution, fulfillment and sorting centers in close proximity,” said MDOT Maryland Port Administration (MDOT MPA) Executive Director William P. Doyle. “We anticipate that long-term reliance on e-commerce will


continue. While we are pleased with our November results, it’s important to remember we are still dealing with COVID-19 and that continues to make this a very unpredictable maritime trade environment.” In addition to higher


volumes, the port continues to gain new and increased business from customers. Examples include:


Three


Nikola semi-truck prototypes that run on zero emission, battery-electric power arrived at the port from Nikola’s


Issue 1 2021 - FBJNA


production facility in Germany and will head to their Nevada facility for testing; Mercedes- Benz is processing 600 units a day, a higher amount than normal, and is scheduling 12-hour work


shifts, seven


days a week to keep up with consumer demand; and the port also recently welcomed a maiden voyage of the Wallenius Wilhelmsen Tannhauser,


the third High


Efficiency Roll On/Roll Off vessel to join their fleet. As part of the port’s public-private


continuing


partnership (P3) with partner Ports America Chesapeake, construction for a second, 50-foot-deep


berth at the


5


Seagirt Marine Terminal is moving forward.


The


additional berth will allow the port to handle two supersized ships simultaneously. Four new additional Neo-Panamax cranes are scheduled to arrive in April 2021 and be operational by summer. The growing container


business also accentuates the need for the Howard Street Tunnel expansion project in Baltimore, which will accommodate double- stacked rail cars to move cargo from the Port. That project is benefiting from public-private investment between the federal government, the state of Maryland, CSX and others.


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