Page 83: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (June 1992)

of quality. The initiatives of

CEFIC and Exxon in ship quality assessments are to be applauded and will help charterers make in- formed decisions.

Customer Requirements

Will Dictate

Customer requirements will dic- tate how long ships will sail and to what standards. It follows that cus- tomers must have standards that allow them to purchase services wisely and not necessarily cheaply.

Many European charterers con- tinue to operate on the spot market for their tonnage requirements and rely on shipbrokers to find the best ship in the best position. In the future, these charterers will have problems finding quality space.

The major international carriers are already heavily contracted, and will become more so as they develop the longer term freighting structures required to develop the confidence to order the new tonnage. Conse- quently, the spot charter will be left with the older tonnage, and likely the lower quality operator.

Both chemical shipper and carri- ers have duties and responsibilities to meet the highest standards of safety and environmental care. This does not come without cost and can only be achieved if freight rates are sufficient for owners to build, oper- ate and maintain ships that meet these standards.

In order to reverse this situation, shippers must determine the best overall value of a supplier's service.

Shippers do not need to guarantee owners's income levels, although it would be nice. Shippers only need to assure the industry that their pur- chasing strategy recognizes and pays for value. Owners, charters and terminals operators need to develop closer long-term relationships.

The decision of which carrier to use will affect storage location as well. A terminal's ability to meet road, rail and barge needs will also be important in selecting the right terminal. My point is that logistics decisions should not be taken in isolation. The most important suc- cess factor will be to choose the best systems and to integrate this fully with your global, marketing, manu- facturing and logistics strategy.

Best Ships May Be

In Short Supply

The best ships and best systems may very soon be in short supply.

Wise companies are already posi- tioning themselves to cope with this inevitable change through long-term alliances with those carriers and storage providers that have the stra- tegic and scarce resources required by the shipper to bring his products to the market.

The industry needs the charter to understand that quality isn't free; it has to be paid for and supported.

Chemical charters should pay for quality and they should do so be- cause they believe it's the right thing to do—not because they have no choice.

Reprinted from Stolten magazine, April 1992

Gulf Coast Ports

To Raise Dock Fees

To come into closer alignment with ports along the U.S. East and West coasts, it is expected that ports across the Gulf of Mexico will raise their dockage fees.

Jim Badger, marketing director for the Mississippi State Port Au- thority, Gulfport, Mi., said that the

Gulf Seaports Marine Terminal Con- ference has attempted in recent years to standardize Gulf port tariffs with- out much success.

Generally lower than ports on the

East and West Coasts, the confer- ence is expected to discuss rates hikes that would equalize Gulf dockage fees at its July meeting.

A 599-foot vessel is charged $3.45 a foot at the general cargo wharves at Freeport, Texas, and Houston, while Tampa charges $4.15 a foot and Mobile $2.05 a foot per day.

The East Coast ports of Miami offers an extremely low 55 cents a foot a day and Jacksonville, Fl., charges $5.14 a foot on a length- overall basis. The Port of Long

Beach, Ca., charges $3.60 a foot a day for the same vessel.

Japanese Committee

To Study Ship Scrapping

In order to promote the scrap- ping of older ships, the Japanese

Shipowners' Association (JSA) and the Shipbuilders' Association of

Japan (SAJ) have formed the "Com- mittee for Joint Study of Problems

Related to Ship Dismantling" in an attempt to organize a worldwide system of scrapping.

JSA and SAJ leaders, including

Susumu Temporin, committee chairman and president of Mitsui

OSK Lines, and Shigeru Goda, vice chairman and chairman of

Sumitomo Heavy Industries, at- tended an inaugural meeting to for- mulate a committee policy. The aim of the new policy is to stress the importance of demolition both in

Japan and abroad, and to make efforts to improve the environment for the promotion of ship scrappings.

Proceeding with its mission, the committee plans to dispatch a joint survey team to assess the current ship demolition situation in Asia.

HYDRASEARCH PRODUCTS

Designed & Built For A life At Sea

Hydrasearch products are built to withstand the punish- ment of the hostile ocean environment providing years of dependable service. Most are built in accordance with

Military Specifications to provide U.S. and foreign navies with the quality and reliability they demand.

Single Fueling Probe Assembly

Underway Replenishment at Sea Equipment:

Products include probes and probe receivers, saddles, hose, couplings, trolleys, transfer chairs, pelican hooks, and slings utilized in Fueling, Solid Cargo, and Vertical transfer-at-sea

ER12 End Fittings and Hose:

Qualified Under Military Specification MIL-H-24136/1

Products include 5, 6, and 8 inch bronze hose end fittings and synthetic rubber hose utilized in shipboard fresh water, salt water, fuel, and oil systems. End fitting con- figurations include straight and 90 degree flange ends, split clamp ends, and hose doglegs.

Hudra'search * I CO., INC. 120 Admiral Cochrane Dr., Annapolis. MD 21401 USA

Phone (410) 224-3821 FAX (410) 266-3054

Circle 157 on Reader Service Card 93 Maritime Reporter/Engineering News

Monitoring and Analyzing

Instrumentation

Serving The Maritime Industry for Over 80 Years • Propeller/Hull Efficiency

Monitors • Sea-Trial Experts • Linear Line Window Wipers • Oil-in-Water Monitors 1 Speed-through-Water Logs 1 Gas Combustion Analyzer 1 Compartment Gas Monitor 1 Torsional Vibration Analyzer 1 Salinity Systems and Monitors 1 Stack-Smoke-Opacity Monitors 1 Portable and Permanent

Shaft-Horsepower Meters,

Torsion Meters, Thrust Meters and Fuel-Monitoring Systems

McNab, Incorporated 20 North MacQuesten Parkway Mount \ernon, New York 10550 (914) 699-1616 • Telex 701621 • Telefax (914) 699-1671

A91-21A

Circle 349 on Reader Service Card