Stevedores to alter timeslot arrangements for trucking operators at Port Botany after concerns were raised about scheme's flexibility
February 26, 2013
Stevedores at Port Botany have agreed to alter timeslot arrangements for trucking operators after concerns were raised about the flexibility of a new scheme.
The New South Wales branch of the Australian Trucking Association (ATA NSW) says operators had expressed concern with a feature of Botany’s cross time zone manifesting scheme, prompting the association to hold discussions with the stevedores and Sydney Ports.
“During the scheme trial period, operators were required to enter a vehicle’s registration number prior to their timeslot commencing,” ATA NSW Manager Jodie Broadbent says.
“Many ATA NSW members were concerned this feature would remove their ability to assign another vehicle to enter the port for that slot, particularly if the intended vehicle was delayed on-route.”
Broadbent says Patrick agreed to alter the system to allow operators to add a vehicle’s registration number during the timeslot. DP World, which is due to begin using cross time zone manifesting from March, will also enable in-timeslot registrations.
“This is another win for ATA NSW, and shows what can be done when all parties are willing to work together to find the best solution,” she says.
Truck turnaround time figures will not be captured if truck registration is entered during the timeslot at either stevedore.
The new manifesting scheme was introduced at Patrick’s terminal on February 18.
“This process offers much more flexibility to carriers and contributes towards a more efficient supply chain through the opportunity to increase containers carried per truck trip and to link both export and import slots held in adjacent time zones to increase two-way loading,” Sydney Ports says.
