U.S. port's supply chain fix challenge: selling 24/7 shifts
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[October 15, 2021]
By Lisa Baertlein
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Port of Los
Angeles is beginning the hard work of convincing terminal operators,
importers, warehouses owners and trucking firms to embrace moving more
cargo at night.
"It's not a single lever we can pull today to open up all the gates,"
Executive Director Gene Seroka said on Thursday.
On Wednesday, the White House gathered stakeholders including retailers
Walmart and Home Depot, logistics firms United Parcel Service and FedEx,
and electronics supplier Samsung. The companies pledged to use more
overnight workers to ease the backups at the Los Angeles and Long Beach
port complex that is the No. 1 gateway for trade with China.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2021/Oct/15/images/ads/current/safety-tip-daily-6.png)
We're "trying to squeeze every minute, every hour of efficiency out of
this port that we can," said Seroka. Most work is currently done during
the day, although some parts of the operation already run 24/7. The
White House said adding more overnight shifts could double available
time to move cargo and union leaders are onboard.
COVID-19 fueled demand for consumer goods while at the same time closing
factories and ports. A shortfall of workers ranging from truckers to
warehouse staff are driving up the cost of goods, contributing to
product shortages, and raising alarms about a worsening global
supply-chain crisis.
The global supply chain "was creaking along before the pandemic," said
John Porcari, port envoy for the White House Supply Chain Disruptions
Task Force.
The health crisis laid bare weaknesses in a brittle global supply chain
built for predictable, just-in-time cargo flows, he said. In many cases,
it is "your grandfather's infrastructure that we're working with."
STRESS AT EVERY LINK
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach significantly lag Chinese rivals
when it comes to port efficiency, according to a ranking prepared by the
World Bank and IHS Markit.
Port terminals in China usually operate 24/7, many tasks are automated
and labor slowdowns are rare, U.S.-based shipping industry consultant
Jon Monroe said.
Seroka and Porcari stressed that U.S. supply chain improvements will not
come at the flip of a switch. Changes are needed at every link to ease
the impact of unintended consequences, they said.
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![](../images/101521pics/news_L13.jpg)
Shipping containers are unloaded from ships at a container terminal
at the Port of Long Beach-Port of Los Angeles complex in Los
Angeles, California, U.S., April 7, 2021. REUTERS/Lucy
Nicholson/File Photo
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The White House efforts announced Wednesday are
expected to account for just 3,500 additional containers per week
being moved at night - a tiny fraction of the 120,000 containers
already moving each week.
Meanwhile, there are 62 container ships waiting to unload some
500,000 containers at Los Angeles/Long Beach - and another 25 are
scheduled to arrive in the next three days.
Those vessels are carrying parts and components for U.S.
manufacturers as well as seasonal goods for retailers racing stock
up for the Nov. 26 kickoff of the make-or-break holiday selling
season, Seroka said.
Extended hours at Los Angeles/Long Beach could benefit Honda Motor
Co, hit hard by the automotive chip shortage, and Mattel, which is
under pressure to get holiday toys to stores, according to Panjiva,
the supply chain research unit of S&P Global Market Intelligence.
And the effort raises the question of where to put all the stuff.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2021/Oct/15/images/ads/current/graue_sda_042021.png)
The Greater Los Angeles area logged a record low vacancy rate of 1%
for warehouses and other industrial space during the third quarter,
according to CBRE Group, a commercial real estate services firm.
"If we increase the capacity at the port, then we still have to find
space to temporarily store goods in warehouses," said Douglas Kent,
an executive vice president at the Association for Supply Chain
Management.
(Reporting by Lisa Baertlein; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
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