Florida Shipper articles from March 2007

Florida Shipper archives from March 2007

It's a start.
March 5, 2007... The same government that claims it can send a colony of high-strung astronauts to survive on the moon and then Mars has been involved for years in a massive, technologically ambitious project to achieve connectivity between two critical...

The CAFTA experience: A light and a long tunnel.
March 5, 2007... BYLINE: Rosalind McLymont Implementation delays are testing the patience of U.S. companies The cheers on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January reverberated in textile and apparel plants across...

Paving the way for US goods and services.
March 5, 2007... Operating under the auspices of the DR-CAFTA Trade Integration Initiative, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency gives financial and technical support to the trade capacity-building strategies of DR-CAFTA countries, with emphasis on economic...

Bank on the shores.
March 5, 2007... BYLINE: Rick Eyerdam Development banks see Caribbean growth With so many small governments and limited resources in the Caribbean, several development banks often conduct the financial planning, support and analysis. This year, they...

LCL express services recommended.
March 5, 2007... The recent announcement that Crowley Liner Services added a new larger, faster roll-on, roll-off ship to its Central America northern zone service underlines the importance of the need for speed and reliability in the ocean trade lanes. ...

Two year hold for Charleston port.
March 5, 2007... The South Carolina State Ports Authority is awaiting approval to build a $600 million cargo terminal in North Charleston, S.C., a process that locals say will take at least two years. Engineers are planning how to demolish about 40...

INTTRA simplifies shipping instructions.
March 5, 2007... INTTRA is offering new software, which the company says simplifies the process of creating shipping instructions for shippers and forwarders, automatically importing customer data and reducing manual data entry. INTTRA's e-commerce...

CAFTA implementation nears for Dominican Republic.
March 5, 2007... Hans Hertell, U.S. ambassador to the Dominican Republic, said on Feb. 22 that in the forthcoming days a definitive date could be announced for that nation's implementation of the DR-CAFTA accord. His statement followed the announcement by...

Commerce secretary defends Cuba embargo.
March 5, 2007... U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said that lifting the long-running U.S. trade embargo on Cuba would weaken the Cuban communist regime and force change on the Caribbean island. Speaking on Feb. 21 to the Council of the Americas, a...

Dominican Republic: Guatemalan firms to trade in textiles.
March 5, 2007... A trade delegation from Guatemala consisting of eight companies recently visited the Dominican Republic to resolve plans to jointly produce apparel, according to the Guatemalan Embassy in the Dominican Republic. An embassy spokesman told...

Jaxport sets sights on third place.
March 5, 2007... The Port of Jacksonville expects to become the third-largest East Coast container port within 10 years and has the money and tenants already in place to surpass all but New York and Hampton Roads, port executives told the Jaxport Propeller Club...

Rosales new president of CCAA.
March 5, 2007... Caribbean-Central American Action announced the appointment of Manuel A. Rosales to president. Rosales replaces Federico Sacasa who served as executive director from 2002-2005 and as president from 2005-2007. Sacasa will remain an active...

For us, the road tolls.
March 12, 2007... In 1956, when logistics expert Dwight D. Eisenhower kicked off the interstate system, the U.S. Congress went on record favoring tax-based financing over tolling for construction of the federal-aid highway system. Like everything else Congress...

Road closure.
March 12, 2007... BYLINE: Peter Leach and Rick Eyerdam For Florida ports and roads, 2015 is the year of the national traffic jam In 10 years, the world of ocean-cargo transportation will be a far different place, to say the least. By 2015, with...

China rolls out RoHS.
March 12, 2007... BYLINE: Jiwei Ye Manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment will continue to face additional environmental restrictions as 2007 progresses. While the European Union and South Korea are scheduled to enact new environmental...

Computer check for longer daylight savings.
March 12, 2007... Across the U.S., information technology specialists and their regulators are being warned that daylight savings time started on March 11 and will continue until Nov. 4, four weeks longer than usual. At Miami International Airport, vendors,...

Jaxport security goes to booster.
March 12, 2007... Giddens Security Corp. has lost its little tussle with the Jacksonville Port Authority in a scene that could have been set in Miami. Giddens had most of what it took to become the new port security provider, along with the county's law...

Senate rejects scan-all container proposal.
March 12, 2007... The Senate on March 2 rejected a proposal that would require the scanning of all containers at foreign ports before they are loaded on U.S.-bound ships. The amendment by Charles "Chuck" Schumer, D-N.Y., would have been added to the Senate...

Caribbean plans for eco-tourism.
March 12, 2007... The Caribbean Media Exchange, or CMEx, is a gathering of tourism industry representatives, government officials, media, youth delegates and development specialists aimed at improving the health, wealth, environment and culture of destinations....

TACA boosts Panama Canal transit fee.
March 12, 2007... The Trans-Atlantic Conference Agreement recently said its Panama Canal Transit Fee will increase on May 1. The move will compensate for the final tier of the Panama Canal Authority's current three-tier toll increase, which will take effect that...

Suez seeks to lure traffic from Panama.
March 12, 2007... The Suez Canal plans to offer discounts on its transit fee to lure all-water traffic from Asia to the U.S. away from the Panama Canal during the eight to 10 years it will take the Panama Canal Authority to complete the planned construction of a...

SSA Marine wins Trinidad pact.
March 12, 2007... SSA Marine has contracted with Point Lisas Industrial Port Development Corp. to help operate and manage the industrial port located 20 miles south of the Port of Spain, Trinidad. The initial term of the contract, which began on March 1, is...

Dominican Republic completes CAFTA.
March 12, 2007... The U.S. Department of Commerce announced the implementation of the free-trade agreement between the U.S., Central America and the Dominican Republic by simply posting it on the White House's Web site without further comment. The...

Airbus shelves A380 freighter.
March 12, 2007... Airbus, the financially troubled European aerospace company, has halted work on the freighter version of its A380 super-jumbo jet following a series of cancellations and deferrals by cargo airlines. The company announced 10,000 layoffs. It...

Customs revamps system for releasing containers.
March 12, 2007... BYLINE: R.G. Edmonson First, there's the 1C message. Customs and Border Protection is telling you, the terminal operator, that a container may be released into U.S. commerce -- unless there are any other holds on it. Then there's the...

Diaz de la Portilla joins Becker & Poliakoff; Stern moves to Sandler.
March 12, 2007... Deborah Stern, who stopped for a cup of coffee at Becker & Poliakoff on her way from U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Washington, has joined the Miami firm of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg. At the Customs Office of Regulations and...

Former Panalpina chief executive Bruno Sidler joins EGL.
March 12, 2007... EGL Eagle Global Logistics of Houston announced that Bruno Sidler has been named president of its Europe, Middle East and Africa region. Sidler most recently worked at Panalpina Group of Switzerland, where he served as president and chief...

Intermarine names Grikitis new chief.
March 12, 2007... The board of directors of Intermarine has elected Andre Grikitis as its new president and chief executive. He succeeds Roger Kavanagh, Intermarine's founder and prior chief executive, who died recently after a lengthy battle with cancer. ...

Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics appoints Iversen chief executive.
March 12, 2007... Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics has named Arild Iversen president and chief executive, effective April 1. Iversen, 52, succeeds Nils Petter Dyvik, 53, who will become group chief financial officer of Wilh. Wilhelmsen ASA on Aug. 1. Iversen,...

Corrigan's Express promotes Fregoso to executive vice president.
March 12, 2007... Corrigan's Express, a rapidly expanding worldwide freight forwarder based in Los Angeles, has promoted Jessica Fregoso to executive vice president. In her new position, Fregoso reports to Chief Executive Jan Ward. Fregoso joined Corrigan's...

An inch deep.
March 19, 2007... If you were looking for a logical, politically correct reason to reject those blithering opportunists -- Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama -- from your presidential candidates list, here is one. These veteran, seasoned, experienced...

Drive on: Ro-ro goes where versatility matters.
March 19, 2007... The ships are called roll-on, roll-off vessels, but a more accurate term would be drive-on, drive-off. In Puerto Rico, drivers steer new and used automobiles and other ro-ro cargo on and off the ships. Automobiles, light trucks and vans are the...

Hoegh Autoliners and Maersk unit merge operations of car carriers.
March 19, 2007... Hoegh Autoliners and A.P. Moller-Maersk through its subsidiary Maersk Shipping Singapore announced a cooperation agreement for operations of their car carrier fleets. Under the accord, the combined fleet of about 67 vessels globally will...

Florida may drop universal port access credential.
March 19, 2007... The Florida Legislature might kill the law requiring a Florida Universal Port Access Credential in favor of the Federal Transportation Working Identity Credential, according to Michael Rubin, vice president of the Florida Ports Council. ...

Chassis pool adds Jacksonville.
March 19, 2007... Consolidated Chassis Management LLC, which last September created the South Atlantic Consolidated Chassis Pool covering the ports of Charleston and Savannah and major inland hubs in Atlanta and Charlotte, N.C., recently said the pool is being...

Exporters face westbound issues.
March 19, 2007... By the end of this year, China could overtake Canada as the top importer of U.S. goods, according to Robert Shepard, director of transportation and logistics for the Kraft Group, a paper maker. Canada is Florida's top trading partner and...

Operating income surges at Tropical Shipping.
March 19, 2007... Tropical Shipping's operating income in the fourth quarter of 2006 soared by 109 percent to $18 million from $8.6 million in 2005, primarily because of increased revenue from higher volume and higher average rates, its parent Nicor Inc....

Trailer Bridge net soars.
March 19, 2007... Trailer Bridge said net income increased more than 40 percent to $3.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2006 from the same period a year earlier as revenue gained 10.7 percent on higher southbound volume and rates and increased fuel surcharges....

SDDC shifts Caribbean port to Jacksonville.
March 19, 2007... With the recent move of U.S. Army south from Puerto Rico to Fort Sam Houston, Texas, the Surface Deployment and Distribution Command is shifting its Caribbean port to Florida. The 832nd Transportation Battalion is relocating from Fort...

Air cargo up slightly.
March 19, 2007... Air-cargo traffic on U.S. airlines increased a modest 2.1 percent in January over the previous year. The gain was spread evenly over domestic and international cargo, according to a report from the Air Transport Association. Carriers flew...

International spurs intermodal gain.
March 19, 2007... In the fourth quarter of 2006, intermodal volume increased 0.6 percent, capping the fifth consecutive year of record traffic, according to the Intermodal Association of North America. The fourth-quarter results included a 4.3 percent...

Beware Port Georgialina.
March 26, 2007... South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford and Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue recently stood on the environmentally sensitive banks of the Savannah River to announce the two states will build and operate a major cargo terminal on the site. Why would two rival...

Perishable selection.
March 26, 2007... BYLINE: Mike Seemuth Ocean offers options to air cargo Shipments of fresh fish, delicate flowers, fruits, vegetables and other perishables are among the most common types of cargo shipped through Miami International Airport and that is...

Carnival chief executive calls Port of Miami 'Third World'.
March 26, 2007... Carnival Cruise Lines Chief Executive Bob Dickinson described the Port of Miami cruise terminal facilities as "Third World" and said the port will lose important business if significant improvements are not made. Dickinson is in dispute with...

Customs extends C-TPAT deadline.
March 26, 2007... Customs and Border Protection has extended to May 2 the deadline for brokers that are members of the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program to comply with minimum-security criteria. The agency originally set a 90-day grace...

Emirates Shipping joins INTTRA.
March 26, 2007... Emirates Shipping has joined the online cargo bookings system INTTRA. Shippers and forwarders who use INTTRA can communicate electronic-shipping orders and shipping instruction to member lines. INTTRA initiates more than 150,000...

House considering new HMT bill.
March 26, 2007... The House Ways and Means Committee will consider a new bill that would exempt most domestic maritime transportation from the Harbor Maintenance Tax. The Short Sea Shipping Promotion Act of 2007 (H.R. 1499) would exempt goods moved by water...

Carnival to develop port at Roatan.
March 26, 2007... Carnival Corp. plans a major investment in the tiny island cruise port of Roatan, Honduras. Called Mahogany Bay-Roatan, the $50 million facility should be completed by mid-2009. The terminal will be built on 20 acres and include two berths...

Jamaica recommends chicken ban.
March 26, 2007... Sen. Norman Grant, president of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, has proposed a ban on the importation of chicken into the Caribbean Community to foster local and regional advancement. Grant, who is also the chairman of the Caribbean...

Virgin Islands is top dollar cruise destination.
March 26, 2007... The U.S Virgin Islands was the destination in the Caribbean with the highest economic contribution during the 2005-2006 cruise year, because it had the highest spending rate per passenger in the region, according to a survey conducted by the...

LAN Argentina and LAN Ecuador to join 'oneworld'.
March 26, 2007... On April 1, LAN Argentina and LAN Ecuador will become affiliate members of "oneworld" -- the only global alliance with member airlines in Central and South America. As affiliates, LAN Argentina, LAN Ecuador will offer the full range of oneworld...

New deal: Federal ID is in the cards.
March 26, 2007... BYLINE: R.G. Edmonson If you are a longshoreman, truck driver or other employee who works at a seaport or an airport, you'll be toting a federal Transportation Worker Identification Credential sometime within the next three years, probably...

Seaboard's Bresky dies at 81.(Obituary)
March 26, 2007... H. Harry Bresky, the pioneering chairman of Seaboard Corp., has died. He was 81. In July, the company chose Mr. Bresky's son, Steven, to succeed him as president and chief executive. The elder Bresky remained chairman until his recent...

Port Manatee honors Gontarski.
March 26, 2007... The Port Manatee Propeller Club has named Joe Gontarski, senior director and special assistant to Port Manatee Executive Director David McDonald, as the club's Maritime Person of the Year. Gontarski was hired as director of the Port of...

Customs appoints Agron to advisory panel.
March 26, 2007... Earl Agron, vice president of security for APL, has received a two-year appointment for the Departmental Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations of Customs and Border Protection and Related Functions. With this appointment, he becomes the...

ALTA adjusts staff.
March 26, 2007... The Latin American Air Transport Association, a nonprofit airline association founded in 1980, has announced the retirement of Francisco Machler, senior adviser, and Celestino Pena, chief counsel. Machler leaves after an unprecedented...

Keller named president of NYK Line.
March 26, 2007... NYK Line (North America) announced the promotion of Peter Keller to president and corporate officer on the Japanese carrier's board, effective April 1. Keller currently serves as executive vice president and chief operating officer. Saburo...