Liner and Tramp Service – similarities and differences
Currently, there are more than 55,000 merchant ships plying global trade around the world..
These ships include General Cargo ships, Bulk and Break Bulk ships, Container ships, Chemical, Oil and LNG Tankers, Passenger, and various other types of ships..
While these are types of ships, these ships could be operating on two main types of services – Liner and Tramp services..
Should the Captain of the Wakashio be held responsible for dead dolphins
Any maritime disaster will have severe impact on assets, people and environment.. The effects of the oil spill from the Wakashio is beginning to manifest itself as there have been several reports of dead dolphins washing ashore on the beaches of Mauritius, even as the bow of the ship has been scuttled and sunk about 14 nautical miles of where the incident happened..
The Captain of the Wakashio has been arrested and charged and currently faces a possible 60 year jail term for failing to safely navigate the vessel in Mauritius waters..
What is your opinion..?? Should the Captain of the ship be responsible for this incident and is a possible 60 year jail term (if convicted) justified..??
What is Dangerous Goods Declaration and who should submit it..??
The safe carriage of Dangerous Goods requires several considerations, processes of approval, acceptance, carriage protocols and documentation..
For the shipping line/carriers, while containerisation brought along ease of handling cargo, it also brought about the headache of not knowing WHAT IS INSIDE THE CONTAINER..
Carriers have no way of knowing what is inside the container and depend on the STC and SLAC information provided by the shipper..
For dangerous goods, this cargo information is provided to the carrier in the form of the Dangerous Goods Declaration..
What is a P&I Club, what they do and why we need them in our lives
P&I Clubs have become an integral and important part of the maritime business.. This article discusses what is a P&I Club, what they do and why we need them..
Importance of declaring the correct cargo weight
Misdeclaration of container weights has been an issue that has been going on for a long time and has plagued many a shipping line, ship and port operators..
In a recent article, I wrote about the basics of container stowage planning and why it is so important..
In this article, I thought it would be worth reiterating the importance of being accurate in the declaration of the weights..
How do I verify if my goods were actually shipped..??
Over the years, I have received several questions from readers relating to a variety of topics on this resource..
Some of them are really valid questions especially if you consider that some of these questions may be from someone importing for the first time or someone exporting for the first time..
It makes you think of the issues that those entering international trade for the first time or shipping their first container would be facing in getting it completed successfully..
The business of shipping, freight and trade could all be a bit overwhelming as there are several processes to be followed and for those who are doing it for the first time, asking questions and finding the right answers is extremely important..
Here are some questions which I received from one of the readers of this resource, possibly, someone who is starting out new or someone experiencing some new problems with their shipments..
Just In Time arrival in maritime industry
No, this article is not about the well-known concept of Just In Time in manufacturing..
But for interest, Toyota Motors created the Just In Time principle for their manufacturing plants based on which, they produce “only what is needed, when it is needed, and in the amount needed” eliminating waste, inconsistencies which results in improved productivity..
This JIT concept has been widely accepted and used by many other industries and has become synonymous with many supply chain processes of automotive, retail and fashion industries..
While not exactly the same, it seems this could also be applied in the maritime field especially in terms of the arrival of ships..
How..??
If a bill of lading is an evidence of contract of carriage, then what is a contract of carriage..??
A Bill of Lading is one of the most important documents in the shipping cycle and comes in different forms such as Negotiable or Order Bill of Lading, Seaway Bill of Lading or Express Bill of Lading and Straight Bill of Lading with further permutations and combinations such as Port to Port Bill of Lading, Combined Transport Bill of Lading or Multimodal Bill of Lading and Through Bill of Lading ..
As most of you may know by now, a Bill of Lading has 3 basic purposes or roles..
- Evidence of Contract of Carriage;
- Receipt of Goods; and
- Document of Title to the goods
In its role as Evidence of Contract of Carriage, the emphasis is on the term “Evidence” because contrary to popular belief, a Bill of Lading is neither
- a contract between the Seller and the Buyer nor
- a contract of carriage between the Carrier and Shipper
So if the bill of lading is the evidence of the contract of carriage, then what is the contract of carriage..??
This is the question in the minds of many in the industry and I will try to shed some light on this issue here..
The basics of container stowage planning and why it is so important
In view of the recent incidents relating to stack collapses on board and containers lost at sea, I thought a refresher on “What is container stowage planning and how it works” would be in order..
This is also to remind everyone in the shipping chain – exporters, agents, freight forwarders, carriers, documentation teams, vessel operators, and stowage planners, the importance of providing and using the correct information for the planning and stowage of the vessel..
Container stowage planning is an art and I absolutely loved the time when I used to do it.. While there are computer systems to do this these days, the basics remain the same..
In this article I have explained how the stowage planning works and why it is so important..
The future of pharma and medical supply chains in the COVID-19 era
Supply chain is often described as the vital and crucial link required to get the product from the manufacturer to the market place for ultimate consumption by the consumers..
While this is a simple enough definition or explanation, it is not as easy as it sounds, especially in specialised industries like Pharmaceuticals..
ShipChain is bringing together some of the experts in the supply chain and pharmaceutical industries to understand the past, present, and future challenges for pharma and medical supply chains in the COVID-19 era..
The expert panelists will examine how supply chains will need to adapt in order to weather the storm caused by this pandemic and the future of pharmaceutical and medical supply chains..
Hydrogen Council welcomes new shipping members – CMA CGM and NYK
Hydrogen is being considered as a very viable alternative to fossil fuels and low sulphur fuels to power the maritime industry..
The Hydrogen Council, a CEO lead coalition comprising of 92 members including large multinationals, innovative SMEs and investors collectively welcomed two new steering members: CMA CGM and Microsoft; seven supporting members: Baker Hughes, Clariant, MAHLE, NYK Line, Port of Rotterdam, TechnipFMC and Umicore; and two investors: Mubadala Investment Company and Providence Asset Group..