John Nardi, President, New York Shipping Association

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John Nardi

For East Coast ports, the post Panamax era is right around the corner, and, in fact, these large post-Panamax vessels have already begun calling at East Coast ports via the Suez route. The challenge these large ships present for many ports has been the topic of discussion up and down the East Coast. In the Port of New York and New Jersey, 2014 was spent developing a collaborative strategy on how to cope with the challenges these large ships will present, and 2015 will be about implementation.

In 2015, as the Bayonne Bridge continues to be raised to accommodate these larger vessels, the two most important initiatives for the New York-New Jersey port will be to continue to bolster and train our longshore workforce, and implement the 23 recommendations developed by the Port of New York and New Jersey’s Port Performance Task Force.

All port stakeholders recognize that the challenges for receipt and delivery of cargo, which will be complicated by the density peaks that will surely come along with these large vessels, can only be handled in a highly coordinated and predictable environment.

The task force has transitioned into the Council on Port Performance with its five-implementation teams. These teams are focused on Intermodal Equipment Operations; Rail, Gate Operations; Customer Care; and Government and Community Outreach. The Tier One task force recommendations, which these implementation teams will be addressing are:

— A gray chassis pool.

— A truck management system.

— An integrated port community system.

— Better Coordinated gate hours.

— The use of RFID technology to report on truck movements.

These initiatives, when accomplished, will have the Port of New York and New Jersey well positioned to best manage the operational challenges of the post Panamax era.

John Nardi, President, New York Shipping Association