The Weekly Catch Up of the Little Things You May have Missed

UK – In 2017-18 seven children died, and 48 more received life-changing injuries whilst crossing or playing on railway tracks. In a bid to alter this GB Railfreight’s (GBRf) safety team is using the company's Rail Innovation & Development Centre (RIDC) Melton to help educate local schools as to the dangers. Rod Storer, Depot Safety Manager, GB Railfreight, said:

“RIDC Melton can be extremely dangerous if people do not understand the risks associated with an electrified test track. We are committed to educating communities local to our operation, especially children, to ensure they are aware of the dangers that exist.

To date GBRf have been demonstrating the hazards at RIDC Melton, with sessions based on the dedicated train testing facility, and its electrified high and low speed test tracks., to youngsters from Asfordby Hill School, in Leicestershire and Crossdale School, in Keyworth, Nottinghamshire, with plans to visit more schools in the East Midlands area.

GERMANY – UTA Edenred, European mobility service provider and Transporeon, the European Transport Management Platform, have joined forces as part of a sales cooperation. From now on, Transporeon offers its European network of carriers a specially created UTA Full Service co-branded card. This card gives Transporeon customers access to UTA’s acceptance network and its comprehensive product and service portfolio.

For its extensive carrier community, Transporeon offers a wide range of smart solutions, which help optimise route and resource planning. By entering a partnership with UTA Edenred, Transporeon says it is bringing even more value to carriers. They will get access to the Europe-wide UTA acceptance network and the mobility specialist's entire range of products and services, which include fuels supply and e-charging, Europe-wide toll services, repair and maintenance, as well as fleet management solutions and transparent reporting and billing.

WORLDWIDE – The original five partners of the Cargo Integrity Group have welcomed the Bureau International des Containers (BIC) and the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) into their ranks, strengthening the group in its efforts to improve safety in the global supply chain.

The Cargo Integrity Group brings together international freight transport and cargo handling organisations with different roles in the supply chain and a shared dedication to improving safety, security and environmental performance throughout the logistics sector.

BIC and FIATA bring valuable complementary perspectives, resources and networks to the group, further deepening its competence and scope. Both organisations have already worked closely with the Cargo Integrity Group and will directly contribute to faster and more effective progress in reducing incidents, accidents, and biosecurity issues.

SWEDEN – The transport of goods via Ports of Stockholm’s ports has, according to the management, functioned very well throughout the pandemic. In 2021, the RoRo freight segment increased 6% compared to the previous year. The Port of Kapellskär is the port in the Group where growth is strongest, with freight handling up 13% compared to the previous year.

Ferry services were impacted by restrictions, and services were paused on some routes however a brand new route opened between the Port of Nynäshamn and Rostock, operated by Hansa Destinations. Stena Line is also investing in the Baltic Sea and introduced new, larger vessels on their Stockholm Norvik Port - Ventspils route.

PHILIPPINES – Subic Bay International Terminals (SBITC) has been included to the rotation of Mediterranean Shipping Company’s (MSC) expanded Seahorse Service, providing industries in northern and central Luzon with a reliable link to global markets, especially Europe and the United States.

Industries including agriculture, automotive, electronics, construction and garments can take advantage of the service’s connection to major transhipment hubs like Singapore, Vung Tau and Tanjung Pelepas, as well as the seamless connectivity to MSC’s global ocean liner network, to ship their products worldwide.

In addition to its comprehensive coverage of Asian ports, the Seahorse service also establishes an improved connection between Subic and Singapore, which could help speed up shipments of dry and reefer imports by MSC from Europe, United States, Canada, South America and other long-haul markets covered by MSC.

INDIA – Yet another ransomware cyber-attack on shipping interest this week with the news that the JN Port Container Terminal (JNPCT), part of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) was hit on the 21 February. Little news was released by the company but at least one ship was diverted away at the Management Information System was frozen by the virus.

JNPT claims the title of the top container handling port in the country with five terminals handling around half of the country’s box traffic. Officials claimed staff worked ‘around the clock’ to solve the problem but no updates have been released by the group as yet.

US – Port of Oakland import cargo volume surged again last month following a record-setting 2021 performance with 83,860 import containers handled in January, an 8.3% increase. Last year, the Port handled 1 million import boxes, the most in its 95-year history. The surge was likely boosted by by February Lunar New Year observances in Asia.

Cargo handling activity reached all-time highs in January at Oakland marine terminals with an average of 2,800 containers loaded or unloaded on every ship at Port. That was up from an average of 2,500 containers per vessel a year ago. The total is up nearly 100% in the past five years.

69 container ships tied up at Oakland in January, down 14% from the same month a year ago. The Port attributed declining vessel calls to two factors, shipping lines seeking economies of scale by loading more containers on fewer ships, and sailing schedule delays at Southern California ports forcing some ships to bypass Oakland. The reduced ship visits resulted in a 10.8% drop in January export volume as exporters couldn’t find enough vessel space to load their containers for overseas destinations.

POLAND – Pall-Ex Poland has opened a new central hub in Łódź. Around 140 kilometres from the Poland’s capital Warsaw, Łódź, is the traditional heart of the Polish textile industry. The new hub supports Pall-Ex Poland’s ambition to increase annual pallet volumes to exceed 500,000 in 2023, as it provides more space and transhipment docks, further improving hub efficiency.

Photo: Key Stage 1 and 2 students from Crossdale School undergoing safety instruction from GBRf.