![]() ![]() Once a berth becomes available, longshoremen operating massive blue cranes lift the metal containers and position them to head inland via truck or train. The problems are especially acute on the Asia-to-U.S. When the supply chain works, goods flow continuously, as if borne along by a river. “We’re lucky there hasn’t been a major accident.” ![]() Our members are feeling the pain of these covid deaths,” said Mike Podue, president of ILWU Local 63. Twenty union members have died of covid-19 while working through the pandemic, the union said.Īt Fenix Marine Services, workers move containers from vessel to truck at the Port of Los Angeles on Sept. ![]() To keep pace, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union has accelerated training of new workers. port expects this year to handle a record 10.8 million containers. To be sure, the United States is importing historic amounts of goods. “Information sharing and additional transparency is one of the few areas where indisputably we could get more capacity out of the current system,” said Dan Maffei, chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission. But other than Los Angeles, New Orleans is the only U.S. More information sharing - including over a longer time period - would allow carriers, terminals, truckers and dockworkers to better position equipment and people. Seroka touts a tool called the Port Optimizer, which forecasts three weeks of incoming cargo. Called “PortXchange,” the software makes port calls “smarter and more efficient” than the use of separate systems or the telephone, according to the port’s website. In the Dutch city of Rotterdam, Europe’s largest port, everyone involved in a cargo vessel’s arrival sees the same information on a common data-sharing platform. Individual ports operate as separate fiefdoms rather than as part of a national system. Concerns over data privacy, business secrets and security have resulted in a fragmented approach. Yet the United States is “decades behind” foreign ports in getting carriers, terminals and shippers to provide each other access to commercial data for planning purposes, said Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles. If equipment gets stuck at any point, delays ripple along the entire chain. … No one’s really in charge,” said Fran Inman, a Los Angeles-based commercial real estate executive who has advised government agencies on supply issues.įor goods to move seamlessly from overseas factories to American addresses, the oceangoing vessels, shipping containers, cargo terminals, truckers, chassis providers and railroads all must work together, like runners in a relay race. “It’s like an orchestra with lots of first violins and no conductor. Americans trapped at home slashed spending at restaurants, movie theaters and sporting events and splurged on goods such as laptops and bicycles, triggering an import avalanche that has overwhelmed freight channels.īut the pandemic also exposed weaknesses in the nation’s transport plumbing: investment shortfalls at key ports, controversial railroad industry labor cuts, and a chronic failure by key players to collaborate, according to interviews with more than 50 individuals representing every link in the nation’s supply chain. Everything is breaking down.”įallout from the once-in-a-century health crisis is the chief culprit behind soaring freight bills and delivery delays. “Global supply chains are not built for this. “It’s going to get worse again before it gets better,” said Brian Bourke, chief growth officer at SEKO Logistics. Consumers are confronting higher prices and shortages of cars, children’s shoes and exercise gear, as the holiday shopping season looms. ![]() Today’s twisted supply chain is forcing companies to place precautionary orders to avoid running out of goods, which only compounds the pressure. Essential freight-handling equipment too often is not where it’s needed, and when it is, there aren’t enough truckers or warehouse workers to operate it.Īs Americans fume, supply headaches that were viewed as temporary when the coronavirus pandemic began now are expected to last through 2022.ĭozens of cargo vessels stuck at anchor off the California coast illustrate the delivery disruptions that have become the signature feature of the recovery, fueling inflation, sapping growth and calling into question the global economic model that has prevailed for three decades. This month, the median cost of shipping a standard rectangular metal container from China to the West Coast of the United States hit a record $20,586, almost twice what it cost in July, which was twice what it cost in January, according to the Freightos index. The commercial pipeline that each year brings $1 trillion worth of toys, clothing, electronics and furniture from Asia to the United States is clogged and no one knows how to unclog it. Reporting from Los Angeles and Joliet, Ill. ![]()
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