NCLTL
ANNUAL CONFERENCE IMPORTANT UPDATE
There
is still time to register for the NCLTL Annual Conference
June 19-21. What a great value and great speakers
and educational programs! Thanks to our generous
sponsors, all events are sponsored, including some really
fun family events, including check-in refreshments, a
family buffet breakfast on Saturday June 21 and family
fun cookout, putting tournament and putting contest on
Saturday afternoon, so bring the family. We also
have a hospitality reception, and for registrants a buffet
breakfast, break refreshments, golfer’s box lunch, golf
cart refreshments, and golf trophies and cash awards.
And we also have some great door prizes so if you have
not registered, please do it soon. Remember:
make your room reservation first at Sea Trail (800.624.6601).
If you have either lost your forms or need more, please
call or email the League office or visit our website at
NCLTL.COM. Don’t miss out on what Sea Trail calls
the “best value of any group that we have ever had”. This
will be our 19th consecutive meeting at the
2500 acre Sea Trail Resort.
NORTH CAROLINA DIVISION OF AIR QUALITY
The
NCDAQ is drafting a new rule to be presented to the Environmental
Management Commission’s Air Quality Committee (AQC).
This rule, if it becomes law could seriously impact truckers.
The draft proposal would prohibit the idling vehicles
with a gross weight over 10,000 pounds more than 5 consecutive
minutes in any 60 minute period. There are notable
exemptions to the proposal including an exemption for
vehicles with APU’s (auxiliary power units). But
APU’s are expensive, costing over $5,000. Other
notable exemptions are occupation of a sleeper berth compartment,
refrigerated units and emergency and military vehicles.
Truckers waiting to be unloaded, taking a nap in a rest
area, etc. could be fined. We are grateful to NCTA
President Charlie Diehl for the information
that he feeds to us due to his lobbying efforts with NC
government in regard to legislation such as this proposal.
He also led the effort to allow more routes for 53-foot
trailers in NC. Please let the League office know
your comments. If you are a trucker and not a member of
the NCTA, your money would be well spent as an informed
member.
SMC3
DEDICATES NEW BUILDING
Longtime League member and supporter
SMC3 has dedicated a new facility to be constructed at
Commerce Pointe, Peachtree City GA. The building
will be 4 stories and 56,000 square feet, adjacent to
SMC3’s Commerce Center building, creating a campus environment
between the two facilities. Commerce Pointe is slated
for completion in December 2008 and will be ready for
occupancy starting in January 2009. SMC3 software
and services are highly endorsed by the NCLTL, including
the very popular CZAR Lite rates. For more information
about SMC3, visit www.smc3.com or call 800.845.8090.
ATA APRIL TRUCK TONNAGE INDEX FALLS 1.1%
ATA
for-hire truck tonnage index declined 1.1% in April 2008.
Tonnage in March fell 1.7% instead of the previously reported
3.2% decline. ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello
said “truck tonnage hasn’t grown since January of this
year on a month-to-month basis, suggesting the overall
economy remains very soft”. He also added that rising
fuel prices are by far a bigger problem for the motor
carrier industry than freight volumes. Trucking
serves as a barometer for the US
economy because it represents nearly
70% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight
transportation, including manufactured and retail goods.
ESCALATING
OIL PRICES
Some
eye opening facts from Scanwell Logistics.
OPEC prices per barrel of oil:
April
07 $ 60.00
Nov 07 $ 85.00
Mar 08 $100.00
May 08 $120.00
THE
NEXT CRISIS: RAILROADS
Michael
Tarm, Associated Express reports some interesting
observations concerning the future of railroads.
The already strained 140,000-mile US rail network faces
gridlock by 2035. Matthew Rose, CEO
of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., has predicted rail
gridlock by 2035. The rail network is already operating
under the strain of congestion, with trains forced to
stand aside for hours because of one-track rail lines.
The damage to the US economy could climb into the billions
of dollars. Higher shipping costs would raise prices
for everything from lumber to grain to automobiles.
The US Chamber of Commerce warns that demand for freight
trains is expected to double over the next 25 years.
Delays hamper the existing rail freight network.
A lone train stopped in Chicago can force other trains
to stop or slow as far away as Los Angeles or Baltimore.
“It is a ripple effect”, according to Scott Haas,
VP of United Parcel Service. UPS uses 3,000 freight
cars every day, more than any other US business.
UPS hasn’t determined the total cost of freight route
congestion but said that just five minutes of daily delays
for each of its drivers amounts to $100 million in losses
a year. Other modes of transportation can’t make
up the slack and a solution will not be cheap. Expanding
capacity would cost $148 billion over 30 years.
Private rail companies would pay most of it, with federal
and state tax dollars covering most of the rest.
Proposed solutions include building new overpasses to
keep trains moving at track intersections and single-line
tracks could be expanded to double or triple tracks.
CSX has announced plans to spend $300 million on upgrades
to allow trains with double-stacked freight cars to run
form the East Coast to the Midwest. That would mean
raising clearance on bridges and tunnels on lines through
the Appalachian Mountains. CSX would like the federal
and state governments to provide $400 million more.
Amtrak shares the rails and get priority. Amtrack’s
long-distance trains were on time just 42 percent of the
time last year and would want to benefit from capacity
upgrades.
DHL,
UPS AGREEMENT
Deutsche
Post World Net has announced a plan to restructure its
DHL US Express business by working with UPS for airlift
capacity and reducing costs in its ground infrastructure.
DHL and UPS have agreed to develop a contract whereby
UPS will provide air uplift for DHL Express US domestic
and international shipments within North America.
DHL will also align its US Express infrastructure to existing
shipment volumes by redesigning its ground line haul network
to better match capacity with customer requirements.
The expected cost savings of about $800 million in 2010
and about $1 billion in 2011. The agreement is expected
to produce up to $1 billion in additional annual revenue
for UPS.
ABF
ENDORSES ATA SUSTAINABLE FUTURE PROGRAM
ABF
Freight System announced May 27 its support for a sustainability
program to reduce both fuel consumption and emissions.
The far-reaching program of initiatives introduced by
the ATA with a slogan of “Trucks Deliver a Cleaner Tomorrow”.
Bob Davidson, ABF President and CEO
stated “because ABF implemented many of the program’s
initiatives more than 30 years ago, we can attest to the
numerous benefits that accrue from widespread adoption
of these measures”. Since 1976 ABF has voluntarily
limited the maximum speed of its trucks to 62 mph.
Each ABF truck annually emits 33.5 fewer tons of carbon
dioxide than identical trucks operating at 68 mph, according
to Gary Hunt, ABF VP, Equipment and Maintenance.
The ATA has committed to a series of measures that together
can reduce fuel consumption by 86 billion gallons and
CO2 emissions of all vehicles by 900 million tons in the
next 10 years.
NEW
WEIGHT AND DIMENSION LIMITS IN MEXICO
From
Wendy Fairer, US Geodis Wilson: The new regulation NOM12
(Weight and dimension limits on Mexican Roads) will be
enforced as of June 1, 2008 . The law will affect
all cargo moving on Mexican roads. The weight limitations
on Mexican roads are being reduced to a maximum payload
of 19 tons. Truckers will have to comply with additional
requirements such as special permission to travel on certain
roads. Truckers will be required to travel specified
toll roads. Strict checkpoints in ports and roads
have been implemented. Fines applied to truckers
and owners of the cargo may vary from $1,500 to $8,000.
Cargo will not be released until payment is received.
CHARLESTON TO GET BOOST FROM SHIPPING SERVICE CALLS
The
Port of Charleston should get a boost in business from
an upgraded South American service and a relaunched Asian
service. Charleston will receive a return of weekly
all-water service from Asia that was suspended in December.
The All Water 5 service, a joint operation of the CKYH
alliance carriers of Cosco, K Line, Yang Ming and Hajin
will resume with Charleston as the last
US port outbound. Eight vessels
with an average capacity of 4,014 TEU will be deployed
on the service. Port coverage includes Kiamen, Ningbo
, Shanghai and Pusan . The expected first call in
Charleston is in late June. Hanjin Shipping, K Line
and Yang Ming are joining CSAV Norasia to introduce a
new service that will provide additional capacity from
the east coast of South America to the US East Coast.
The SNA or South and North American service will deploy
five ships with average capacity of 2,500 20-foot equivalent
units. The SNA service replaces the existing NSA
service, which was operated by Hanjin, K Line, Yang Ming
and Hyundai Merchant Marine with four 1,800 TEU vessels.
The service offers calls in Sao Francisco do Sul, Santos
and Salvador , Brazil
, Puerto Cabello , Venezuela
and Rio de Janeiro . Charleston is the last
US port outbound, offering exporters
quick transit times to overseas markets.
PORT OF LONG BEACH AWARDS GRANTS
Two
Port of Long Beach container-cargo terminals will receive
$5 million in grants from the Port to convert diesel-powered
cargo cranes to electricity for substantial air pollution
improvements. The Board of Harbor Commissioners
approved two grants of $2.5 million each to help fund
the electrification of 28 diesel-powered rubber-tired
gantry cranes and reduce air pollution by about 120 tons
a year. The grant program was established to help
terminal operators reduce emissions from the diesel-powered
machines by converting them to electricity.
GE
SECURITY TO SUBMIT COMMERCEGUARD CONTAINER SECURITY SOLUTION
GE
Security, a subsidiary of General Electric, has announced
plans to submit its CommerceGuard container security solution
for participation in the next phase of US Customs and
Border Protection testing and evaluation of conveyance
security devices. CommerceGuard is a leading solution
for global supply chain security, currently helping to
protect intermodal shipping containers while they are
in-transit by adding intrusion detection to other security
measures already in place in the supply chain. Test
and evaluation is an important step forward on the path
to better protecting seaports and the entire global supply
chain with the critical security layer CSDs can currently
offer. The CommerceGuard container security device is
mounted inside a container as it is being stuffed for
shipment in order to monitor for, and report on, potential
en route tampering. While in transit, the devices
communicate securely with fixed and handheld readers.
The readers forward encrypted security and tracking information
wirelessly to the global CommerceGuard information Network
where it is accessible by authorized shippers and officials
such as customs officers. Automated tamper alerts
are routed to appropriate authorities when warranted.
GE Security has announced plans to submit its CommerceGuard
container security solution for participation in the next
phase of US Customs and Border Protection testing and
evaluation of conveyance security devices. CommerceGuard
is a leading solution for global supply chain security,
currently helping to protect intermodal shipping containers
while they are in-transit by adding intrusion detection
to other security measures already in place in the supply
chain.
PMA,
ILWU REPORT ON NEGOTIATIONS
The
International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific
Maritime Association May 22 has reported the following:
“With more than one month remaining before the current
waterfront labor pact expires, negotiations continue between
the Pacific Maritime Association and the International
Longshore Warehouse Union. Each side has exchanged
and modified proposals as part of the discussions aimed
at reaching a fair and reasonable agreement by July 1,
2008 , when the current six-year contract is set to expire.”
The current contact covers 26,000 ILWU-represented longshore
workers at 29 West Coast Ports in California , Oregon
and Washington . The PM represents cargo carriers,
terminal operators and stevedores operating on the West
Coast.
NC
TOLL ROADS TO “BILL YOU LATER”
North Carolina will be one of the first states to go cash-free
when it starts building toll roads. The NC Turnpike
Authority is considering a new way to take drivers money
on the state’s first toll road, the planned 18-mile Triangle
Expressway between Research Triangle Park and western
Wake County . By not having toll booths, officials
claim that they will save $60 million in land and construction
costs alone. Regular drivers will have electronic
transponders on their dashboards and also accounts with
the Turnpike Authority. Overhead sensors will ID
their cars for billing later. For the rest of the
drivers, special cameras will collect license numbers
and use the information to bill tolls from the vehicle
owners.
NEW
LIFE FOR GLOBAL TRANSPARK
Spirit
AeroSystems has promised to bring 1,031 jobs and $570.5
million in investment to the Global TransPark in Kinston
NC . The state of NC lured the company with more
than $180 million in incentives to try to revive the park.
Spirit makes aircraft components for manufacturers including
Boeing, Airbus and Gulfstream. The Global TransPark
was built 17 years ago to transform the Eastern NC economy,
but has netted only 12 tenants and has required tax money
to keep it in operation, to date having spent $87 million.
Spirit will pay an average yearly salary of $48,000 and
expects to open its operation at the Global TransPark
in 2010.
PARKDALE
MILLS MAKE MAJOR INVENTMENT
Parkdale
Mills CEO Andy Warlick has announced the
purchase of 48 Rieter spinning machines at a cost of $30
million by the Gastonia NC based yarn spinner. The
machines are 500 positions long, the longest rotor-spinning
machine in the world. The machine handles up to
four robots, including AEROpiecing for yarn-like piecing.
This is one of the largest orders ever placed by a sales
yarn spinner. Parkdale, one of the world’s largest
yarn producers, has been involved in the evaluation process
with Rieter for four years. About 80 employees work
12-hour shifts at the 200,000 square-foot plant #26, which
Parkdale acquired 10 years ago. The new equipment
gives the facility about 2 ½ times the production than
before. 100 percent cotton yarn is made for export
to the Dominican Republic
and Honduras
. “This is a great facility with a great work force
in a great community”, Warlick said.
TALLER
WAREHOUSES THE NEX BIG THING
Two
buildings under construction in Charlotte ’s Sykes Industrial
Park West will have 40-foot clear ceiling heights so distributors
can stack goods higher and tighter. Taller warehouses
are a trend in the industry as companies try to save land
and construction costs. The buildings will lease
for $6.00 per square foot and $20.69 storage per pallet.
Charlotte has become the nation’s 14-th largest distribution
center with more than $32.7 billion in annual wholesale
sales. The two buildings cost $17.5 million to develop.
Charlotte ’s interstate highway connections, hub airport
access and proximity to major seaports make it a natural
for taller and more sophisticated distribution facilities.
LIQUOR
STOLEN
A
tractor-trailer was stolen from behind a Bojangles in
Clayton NC with a cargo of liquor valued at a half-million
dollars. Police in Clayton are not sure if the thieves
knew what they were taking.
JERRY
ORR
Charlotte-Douglas
Aviation Director Jerry Orr was featured
in an article in the Charlotte Observer. The article
was written by Stanford Brookshire, Jr.,
retired founder, president and CEO of Acentron Technologies
and former Airport Advisory Committee Chairman.
Jerry has been with the Charlotte-Douglas International
Airport more than 30 years. He has been a friend
and speaker for the League on more than one ocassion.
Under his direction the airport has become one of the
nation’s premier airports, providing worldwide connections
for more than 33 million passengers and a thriving cargo
terminal. The airport is recognized as one of the
nation’s top economic development facilities, with over
$10 billion in economic impact. Many persons do
not know that the airport is profitable and is run as
a business. The airport does not rely on local taxes.
Charlotte is the 16th busiest
US airport and one of the fastest
growing among the world’s 30 busiest airports. The
Airport will continue to grow and the opening of the new
intermodal facility will make it a great place to do business,
thanks to Jerry and the staff at Charlotte-Douglas.
NEW
COMPANY NAME
Mike Medley , Station Owner, Concert Group
Logistics, Greensboro NC
800.824.3309 mmedley@cglship.com
Buddy
Holson, Horizon Logistics,
4064 Colony Rd. , Charlotte NC 28211
704.778.7309 bholson@hrzlog.com
UPDATED
MEMBER INFORMATION NEW LOCATION
Doug Muse, President,
D&W Transportation, 124 W Catawba Ave. , Mt Holly
NC 28120
704.820.9919 dwdoug@bellsouth.net
IMPORTANT
MEETING
The
Port of Virginia will hold the Fourth Annual Motor Carrier
Management & Safety Conference Thursday August 7,
2008 . The meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn
Virginia Beach Executive Center , 5655 Greenwich Rd. ,
Virginia Beach VA. The meeting will start at 8:00
AM and adjourn at 4:00 PM . Lunch will be provided
by the Virginia Port Authority. An excellent and
diversified agenda is set. Cost is only $25.
You must pre-register. Contact Kathy Raymond
at 757.498.2562 or email http://www.drivesafehr.org/motocarriersafety.shtml
or register on line at http://drifesafehr.org/motorcarriersafety.shtml
SEA
TRAIL RECEIVES AWARD
The
Sea Trail Golf Resort & Convention Center has been
named a winner of the 2008 Pinnacle Award by Successful
Meetings magazine as announced by Chris Robertson,
Marketing Manager at Sea Trail. We congratulate
the excellent Sea Trail Staff on this award. Our
contacts at Sea Trail are John Humphries
and Donna Rabon. These two professionals
have worked extremely hard and have been very cooperative
with the League. What a wonderful resort and a great
staff! |
