Page 36: of Maritime Logistics Professional Magazine (Mar/Apr 2018)

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PORT LOGISTICS

Busy Ports Drive Industrial

Real Estate Demands

As eCommerce fuels cargo growth, imports are booming and U.S. ports are bracing for the infux.

By Kevin Turner ith the explosive growth of eCommerce and imported goods. As ports embrace automation and become strong consumer confdence, the nation’s busi- more accessible to accommodate the infux of products, larg- est ports are seeing a steady rise in the volume er ships with signifcantly more cargo capacity can now use

Wof imports, demand for industrial real estate, some U.S. ports for the frst time. Major metropolitan and and the need for the modern logistics that can adequately fa- coastal ports across the U.S. are seeing greater import vol- cilitate speed and effciency. umes in part because ports are making enhancements to the

Last year, a record setting total of over 20 million inbound physical infrastructure of their harbors. loaded containers reached the 13 major terminal ports across the United States, and the total volume of imports was up 7.6 Evolving Supply Chains Start on the Docks percent. That pace won’t taper off anytime soon, and consid- Some ports are getting deeper. The Savannah Harbor Expan- ering indicators like the steady rise of retail spending, record sion Project for example is halfway through a $973 million high levels in consumer confdence, and the increase in GDP expansion project that is deepening its water levels. Last year seen in 2017, major U.S. ports have no choice but to evolve. cargo volumes topped 4 million container units at this port for

It’s not just consumer demand that is driving this boom in the frst time, and the dredging of the 8-mile outer harbor will 36 Maritime Logistics Professional March/April 2018 | |