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Truck Drayage Productivity Guide (2011) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 33-38

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From page 33...
... Long and unpredictable overall truck turn times at marine terminals, • Long and unpredictable marine terminal gate queuing • Marine terminal gate processing delays • Marine terminal procedural exceptions and trouble tickets • Container chassis supply time and delays • Marine terminal container yard congestion delays • Marine terminal disruptions 2. Extra drayage trips ("dry runs")
From page 34...
... 20 min queue at inbound gate Pool operators continue to expand operations Lack of easily accessible information on correct procedures Estimated standard deviation more than 30 min 20 min of idling and creeping per move Inexperienced drivers and carriers 5% of transactions take much longer Average about 1 hour per transaction Unpredictability makes it difficult for motor carriers to meet service standards Significant avoidable emissions$1.2 billion of trucker time spent in marine terminals 24 million gate transactions annually Variability in gate processing time Problem worse at legacy gate facilities One-stage gates w/o bypass Gate processing time variability Additional idling and creeping Suboptimization, motor carrier experiences most of cost Average 12 min when driver must obtain chassis 12 min of idling and creeping All -- improve communication, collaboration, proficiency, and standardization Customer: choice of experienced truckers Marine terminals and motor carriers: training Do it right the first time Increase worker proficiency Automate, speed gate process Uneven procedural compliance by shippers, marine carriers, motor carriers, and marine terminals Legacy facilities require capital to modernize Marine labor agreements Continuous quality improvement Applicable to grounded terminals Estimated standard deviation more than 5 min Trucker-owned chassis 4-5 million inbound gate moves per year Shipper-driven actions (e.g., this study) Righttechnology Adequate capacity Dedicated empty & chassis yards APM Portsmouth Two-stage gates or equivalent Fast diversion to trouble window for exceptions Well-trained drivers and gate clerks Clean and timely customer booking Effective electronic communication Solutions Summary Problem Statement: Long and Unpredictable Overall Turn Times at Marine Terminals ImpactsCauses Recognize and address issue Improve communication, collaboration, proficiency, standardization Port community communication and collaboration Shipper-driven communication, education, and cooperation Suboptimization, motor carrier experiences most of cost Motor carriers: problem identification, cooperation Implementation Waits for lift or flip Chassis supply exceptions Time to locate, inspect, and hook up chassis Modernize Avg.
From page 35...
... P roblem: Marine Terminal Disruptions Inefficiency Process or facility changes $50 per trip Systems failure Management changes Estimate one terminal disruption annually Ocean carrier tenant shifts Sudden increase in volume Strikes Short-term interruptions Dispatch or driver error Poor communication $ 100 per occurrence Proactive dispatchers Inexperienced workers Motor carrier -- problem resolution Booking error Poor communication, customer error 0.1% of containers Make use of available systems Inaccurate systems Terminal error Poor Communication, system error $1.2 million annually Well-trained clerks and drivers Procedural discrepancies Vessel Sharing Agreements $75 per move Chassis pools Estimate 1% of containers Ocean carrier tenant shifts Human error Highway capacity shortfall $50/hour Road condition problems 10% penalty on day 4 hour driving $25 per day $150 million annually Port community -- strong political support Port Authority -- leadership role Problem: Marine Terminal Container Yard Congestion Delays Problem: Extra Drayage Trips, "Dry Runs" Problem: Extra Empty Equipment Moves Problem: Congestion on Streets and Highways Port community active in highway planning Proactive port community advocacy to gain share of highway improvement funds Long-term effort Difficult, time consuming Nonrecurring incidents Congestion, inability to recover Significant, unable to quantify the time penalty Extra idling and creeping Missed customer appointments Marine carriers -- primary problem resolution Support by others to provide accurate information. Empty equipment in wrong location Extra drayage moves within port complex Assume 1.5 hours per move $9 million annually Extra moves Redundant system Communicate nature and details of crisis and remedies Add resources; typically land and labor Disorganized, congested facilities Improve equipment distribution practices to take advantage of new flexibilities Traditional practices Terminal congestion Delay in empty positioning Marine terminals and carriers direct return of empty equipment to different locations Daily communications with motor carriers using a variety of latest technology; web, email, etc.
From page 36...
... The time impacts shown range from a few minutes per move due to gate processing delays, to an average of about an hour per move for trouble tickets or comparable exceptions. Since drayage costs are primarily a function of time, the time impacts drive the cost estimates.
From page 37...
... In general, they encompass steps to mitigate peaking and congestion, and reduce exceptions and trouble tickets as follows: • Better use of port and terminal information systems to ensure that import containers are ready to be picked up; • Two-stage terminal entry gates (or equivalent capabilities) to segregate and handle exceptions without delaying routine transactions; • Appointment systems that can make terminal transactions more predictable and reduce gate and container yard congestion; • In the near term, neutral chassis pools to streamline in-terminal chassis logistics; • In the long term, trucker-supplied chassis to eliminate in-terminal chassis logistics; • Extended gate hours, where required, to reduce and accommodate peaking; • Better driver and drayage firm information and training; • Importer and exporter preference for experienced drayage firms that understand and use the available productivity tools; • Rationalization of empty container and chassis return requirements; • Wider use of OCR, RFID, and other technologies to automate, streamline, and routinize terminal gate processing; • Proactive chassis maintenance and flagging of defective chassis in terminal pools; • Elimination of gate closures for lunch or other breaks; • Improved accuracy of exporter booking instructions and documentation; • Correction of terminal systems "glitches" that lead to trouble tickets or dysfunctional work-arounds; Drayage Problems and Solutions 37
From page 38...
... • Ocean carriers can rationalize empty returns, reduce booking errors and exceptions, and support terminal improvements and extended gates. • Customers can reduce booking and paperwork errors, and use experienced, knowledgeable drayage firms.


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