By Karen E. Thuermer, AJOTIf activity through the Port of Baltimore is any indication of how the economy is going, here’s how commodity groups are stacking up. Comparing the port’s current fiscal year (June 2009 through May 2010) with the previous Fiscal Year (June 2008 through May 2009), pulp product used to produce tissues, toilet paper, and diapers is up 26 percent; automobiles is up 21 percent; containerized (general) cargo is up 1 percent; paper is down 29 percent; and roll-on roll-off equipment such as tractors and farm equipment is down 34 percent. Imported Forest Products Imported forest products are big at the seaport, thereby making the Port of Baltimore the No. 1 seaport in the United States for this commodity group. The port handles the line share of pulp out of Brazil for U.S. consumption. “This supplies Kimberly Clark and Proctor & Gamble for pulp used for tissues, toilet paper and diapers,” says Executive Director James J. White, Maryland Ports Administration (MPA). High quality rolled paper is the other big paper commodity that arrives the seaport from Europe. Tonnage in this group, however, is down due to new technology offerings such as electronic books that are challenging the rolled paper industry. “In talking to big manufactures in Finland, they don’t see their business getting back to the level of exports they had for a number of years,” White says. But there are a number of paper products that come in continue to come into the United States like packaging material for consumer goods, papers used for gift wrapping and gift boxes. “They’re going to have to do a bit of reinventing,” White says of the paper industry. Thanks to the variety of commodities handled by the paper industry, however, White is optimistic. “I think they will come out of the recession fine,” he says. While the port recently lost one of its paper customers, M-real, to the Port of Philadelphia, UPM-Kymmene Oyj, continues to ship to the Port of Baltimore. “They are a top-of-the-line forest products producer,” White says. Being adept at handling paper shipments is a must for this industry group, particularly since one roll of high end paper goes for around $15000 to $20,000. Since these rolls run over high speed printing equipment, it is critical that no edges get creased or bumped. “If a roll becomes unbalanced, this is a problem for printers,” he comments. “As a seaport, you have to know what you are doing when it comes to handling this commodity.” Stevedores operating at Locust Marine Terminal, the paper handling terminal at the Port of Baltimore, have much experience with this commodity. Plus, the port operates a state-of-the-art shed that has no columns and is pristine in its interior. “We built it so that our customers won’t have to worry about people damaging the cargo by putting it next to a column or on floors that did not support the weight,” he says. Paper rolls can be exceptional heavy. Consequently, MPA replaced paper storage sheds with floors capable of supporting 1,800 pounds per square foot. “I think seaports that operate terminals with older forest product terminals will be challenged,” White remarks. “We are well positioned. All of our sheds are brand new, offer the latest technology. They have strong floors, high ceilings, and integrity in their roofing systems.” Automobile and Ro-Ro Trade The roll-on roll-off (ro-ro) business at the port has not bounced back like automobiles. Winding the clock back about a year and a few months, White points out that the automobile business was off 50 percent. “Cars simply were not moving,” he says. “There would be a manufacturer overseas that would come in with an excess of 50,000 cars on the ground. Now we have less than 25,000.” How long cars remain at the seaport before being moved out depends on the manufacturer. Higher end cars like Mercedes, BMWs, and Jaguars move more quickly than those manufactured by, say, Ford. “They are here