Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, longshore labor has stepped up to keep cargo moving so ports could stay open to handle the record consumption demand of US consumers. These heroes played a critical role in keeping the economy growing, and they deserve admiration and thanks, especially since they continued to work when there were no vaccines available. Port terminals and longshore workers came together to work for the common good of the nation, and not just as employers and union members.
Entering 2022, the biggest challenge facing the freight transportation industry remains siloed supply chains. Shipping is a repeat business, and everything works in cycles through the supply chain from factory origin to ship to truck or train.
The industry needs to pivot to operationally look at the supply chain at a higher performance level. For example, when a container ship departs late from Asia to the US, it triggers 14,000 TEU of smaller cycles that impact the supply chain. These cycles have an exponential cascading effect.
The solution is to have better data, so that port operators, truckers, warehouse leaders, and rail operators can plan their resources two to three weeks out from events like this. This would also enable warehouse operators and drayage providers to optimize empty container returns and maximize dual transactions, in which an empty container is dropped off at the port and a full import load is picked up in the same trip.
This holistic approach would clearly make supply chains flow more efficiently through better visibility. This approach is also at the heart of Maersk’s supply chain integrator strategy and TradeLens, the industry-neutral supply chain information sharing platform developed jointly by IBM and Maersk subsidiary GTD Solution.