Another roller-coaster year for supply chain equipment was experienced in 2022. As a trade association representing container lessors and chassis providers, we watched and helped our members develop strategies to adapt and meet demands globally and nationally to shifting supply chain needs. Tariffs implemented in 2021 and general market conditions in 2022 had an impact on equipment price and availability that I expect will continue into this year (despite anticipated normalization of global trade) and beyond.
Despite the challenges associated with an extremely dynamic marketplace and shifting gateway traffic, our members met the needs of their customers in 2022. For shippers to ensure capacity, they need to share volumes and expectations with their suppliers and vendors and develop cooperative solutions instead of adversarial relationships. Our members work hard to know their customers and keep pace with equipment requirements. Educating customers on transactional issues and detailed operational handoffs will be even more important in 2023 to make sure they have transparency into what’s happening in any situation and will hopefully help slow down new attempts to regulate or legislate short-term supply chain issues.
Following the lead of our members, the Institute of International Container Lessors (IICL) reviewed and adjusted our internal processes and invested in developing additional online training opportunities and creating digital documents that support the training and reference material for container inspectors on a global scale. These new products are being rolled out at the beginning of this year.
During 2022 we partnered with other global associations and built great working relationships, and we will continue to grow those relationships in 2023 and beyond. These relationships are based on trust and understanding and must be nurtured over time. The same holds true for all business relationships, even in logistics.