Asia’s new battleground for ports and liner shipping is the principal conference theme for TOC Container Supply Chain Asia 2013
Shippers, logistics service providers, ocean carriers and port terminal operators will meet in Hong Kong at the 17th TOC Container Supply Chain: Asia to debate the future of global supply chains against an uncertain and unpredictable environment characterised by sluggish economic growth in many markets and underlying structural shifts in global logistics.
Leading industry figures have already confirmed their participation in the TOC CSC: Asia conference agenda including: Mark Holloway, Customer Service & APAC Supply Chain Director, Diageo; Brian Noe Kristensen, Head of Far East Asia Liner Operations Cluster, Maersk Line; John Elliott, President & CEO, Busan New Container Terminal; Troy Shortell, Senior Vice President, HAVI Logistics; Stanley Smulders, SVP Asia - Europe & West Africa Trade Management, MOL Liner; Andy Lane, Independent Consultant & Terminal Partnering Expert; and Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, CEO North Asia, DAMCO.
Having been largely driven by China’s explosive growth in the past decade, the global economy now has to adjust to flat performance in Europe and North America, while China itself has started to show signs of slower growth over the near future.
A combination of circumstances is resulting in an unstable market background for container trades. Liner services have to figure how they can respond to shipper demands for more reliable service supply while also attempting to restore financial viability following a period of disastrous rate cutting. At the same time the first of the new generation of mega-container vessels have started entering deepsea lanes adding to concerns about excess capacity. In addition container terminals are racing to expand their handling capabilities to cater for ever larger volumes of boxes: as many as 6,000 units may have to be loaded/discharged during a single port call – and in record times as well!
The key to ensuring fast, efficient movement of containers around the world lies in the container terminal, the interface between vessel and hinterland. Port-related costs are among the highest expenses incurred by ocean carriers. Yet until now shipping lines and terminals have rarely embarked on real collaboration with a view to alleviating this situation. TOC CSC: Asia will provide high-level analysis of the terminal dimension in global logistics, and leading industry experts will walk delegates through the leveraging of carrier-terminal partnerships for improved end-to-end supply chains.
Learn more about conference at www.tocevents-asia.com/portnews