b'8American Journal ofTransportation ajot.com(VOLUMEScontinuedaddresschallengesassociatedNavigating change just part of being from page 6) withappointmentsystems, movingtwoboxesinonesaidMs.Yakom.Wehave trip,saidLisaYakom,hadparticipationfromoceanan NVOPresidentofthe Associationcarriers, and terminal operators. ofBi-stateMotorCarriers.Shippersandtruckers,allNVOs (Non-Vessel Owning Common Carriers) are by statute in the middle Instead,oceancarriersareworktogethertoevaluateof it all when it comes to ocean carriage. And when change is occurring fast requiring us to return emptieswhat works and what doesntin the shipping industry, as it is today, NVOs like Troy Container Line are to a different terminal becauseand figure out how to resolveamong the first that get the call from their clients. it is convenient for them. these chronic issues.She explained that oceanBy George Lauriat, AJOT carriersrarelyprovidemoret AriFFs Andr uLes tothanonelocationwhereC LAssiFyi ndependent BeingaNon-VesselOwningCommonway to make this move or set up their supply carriers are allowed to returnC ontrACtors Areh Ard Carrier, better known as an NVOCC or in thechain for the uncertain future. theiremptycontainers,andtop rediCt shorterform,anNVO,isntaneasybusinessAs Troy explained, Were getting busy with ifthatlocationrequiresanWhileefficiencyisthetoexplain. Afteralltheysitinthemiddleofsome strange requests out-of-the norm requests appointment to get in, it cantopconcernofthecarriersthe ocean shipping transaction, neither fish norfor us [Troy Container Line], clients looking into take days to secure one. herassociationrepresents,fowlbutsomethingofeach.more bonded long-term storage Ifwecantgetanit is not the only issue to beIn the NVO case, their role isoptionstobuythemselves appointment within free time,addressed.Tariffsandlaborthat of an intermediary, buyingtime.theOceanCarrierdemandspoliciesarealsoimpactingslotsfromthesteamshiplinesTheseclientshaveoften thatweprovethelackoftruckers that serve ports. andsellingspacetoshippersneverbeendeeplyinvolved capacity,sheexplained.The situation with tariffsandfreightforwarders.Thus,intheirfreightmovements This often requires carriersis fluid and rapidly evolving,theNVOsprimarycustomer- butnow,importersasking to take screenshots for everyso its difficult to predict withbase comes through the freighttheir freight forwarders more singlebookingattemptforany certainty what the long- forwarder side of the business.questions about the tariffs and every single container, whichtermimpactswillbe,saidAs a consequence of being inwanting to control a lot more is a huge burden for truckersMs.Yakom.The90-daythe middlea transportationof their import costs here in that causes carriers to expendpauseallowedeveryonetointermediaryastheFederalthe US rather than leaving that anextraordinaryamountofexhale in the short term, butMaritimeCommission(FMC)to the suppliers So, weve time and effort. we are all keenly aware thatwould categorize the professionhad some freight forwarding The result is that carrierstheexpirationdatewillhit the NVO must avoid rustlingclientsherethatareasking maketwiceasmanymovesrightaroundtherushwhenthefreightforwardersclientsmoreaboutcontrollingthe to serve one customer, whichholiday merchandise usuallywhile trying not to collide withMichael Troy II importcosting,andthatsa impactstruckingcompanyarrives. the sale interests of the ocean container carriers,good opportunity that has come out of it as costs. In some instances, oceanAnotherissueisthewhichareusuallytryingtosellFCL(Fullwell [for Troy Container Line].carrierswithnoavailableclassificationofworkersContainerLoads)thusleavingtheLCL(LessOfcourse,buildingalong-termplanis appointmentsaskcarriersasemployeesratherthanContainer Loads) sales to the NVOs.itself a challenge.As Troy says, Clients front-toholdontothecontainerindependentoperators. AccordingFor a neutral NVO like Red Bank, Newloadinginventoryworksforacertainperiod withoutanycompensationto Ms. Yakom, Port truckingJerseybasedTroyContainer,thisuniqueof time but thats not a long-term strategy. So, for storage charges or chassistends to attract a high percentagepositioningmakesthecompanysrolemoreI think a lot of clients are trying to figure that leasingfees.Itisdifficultofowner-operatordriversthanjustanalternativetooceancarrierlong-term strategy out because you cant shift forcarrierstoabsorbthesebecause the short-haul natureservices for a forwarder or shipper looking tothese larger supply chains within two or three additional costs, and they areof the drayage industry allowsmove LCL or FCL loads. But because of theiryears. A lot of [clients] had shifted to a China unlikely to pass these chargesthemtoreturnhometotheirmiddle positioning in the market, NVOs are aplus one model. and now their plus one [an totheircustomerswhofamilies every night rather thansource of market intelligence, which will helpalternative sourcing nation like Vietnam] might questionadditionalchargesspending days or weeks doingshippers and freight forwarders make strategicbe at risk of having some volatility there as well. afteradeliveryhasalreadylong-haul runs. decisions with their freight. I think thats the biggest challenge, trying to sort been completed. TheNationalLaborout both short term and long term of clients.RelationsBoardandthee xistentiALu rgenCy : p LAnning For theC ongestion is A U.S.DepartmentofLabor,u nknoWn o thero ptionsr esuLt AndC Ause oF throughadministrativerulesIn an interview with AJOT, Michael TroyOne of the ways that importers have been i neFFiCienCy ForM otor andboardrulingsinrecentII was asked how the business is doing withlooking at improving their situation is through C Arrierss ervingp orts years,havemadeitharderthe chaos of tariffs and other supply chain chal- strategicstorageandtheextendedNew These factors exacerbateforemployerstoclassifylenges and surprisingly he answered, Its likeJersey region offers a lot of alternatives, If theissueofcongestionindividualsasindependentyou are in a consulting job Troy explainedyoure bringing goods in thats on the water, experienced by many of thecontractorsasopposedtothat many of his clients were developing theirobviouslynothingsimpacted[intermsof nationslargestandbusiest(VOLUMEScontinued onown strategies and looking for ideas on alterna- tariffs] as long as its on the waterbut if you ports. When the Port of Newpage 14) tive supply chain strategiesis there a better(CHANGEcontinued on page 18)YorkandNewJerseyhave onlyoneterminalaccepting carriers for drop off or pick up,trafficbecomeseven morecongested,which addstoalackofefficiency formotorcarriers.Itisnot uncommon for a truck to wait so long in line to enter a port facility that the driver reaches the limit of his or her allowed hoursofservice(HOS)for that day.The Association of Bi-state Motor Carriers has worked to address these issues in several ways, including communicating with ocean carriers and even speaking with state legislators to enact reforms.One of the more promising effortsistheCouncilon PortPerformance,where manystakeholders,including Bi-state Motor Carriers, and its Appointment System Working Group.Our group has met seven timessincelastJune,and werecurrentlyfinalizingour recommendationsforhowto'