Auckland move to ease port congestion

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33611, 13 August 1974, Page 3

Auckland move to ease port congestion

(N.Z. Press Association) AUCKLAND. New equipment was being rushed to the Auckland container terminal to enable the container exchange rate to be restored to its previous high level of up to 20 containers an hour by September, said the general manager of the Auckland Harbour Board (Mr R. T. Lorimer). He said the present overworked fleet of five straddle carriers would be increased to 12 by February. The container ship ACT 3 is heading toward New Zealand with two reconditioned straddle carriers from New York. These are being leased for up to two years. The ACT 3 is being diverted from a scheduled trip to Australia to land the straddle carriers and a container with SNZ3O,OOO worth of spares by August 20. NEW CARRIERS Yesterday, the first of three new straddle carriers ordered from Australia at $132,000 each were loaded into the Australian Exporter at Sydney, for delivery by August 17. The other two are due in the next three months. Mr Lorimer said that before the end of September he would seek the board’s approval to order another two new straddle carriers, to be delivered by February. Other moves to ease the congestion at the Auckland container terminal and the conventional port were: | Shipping companies had agreed to clear more'

than 600 empty containers from the Auckland terminal in the next four weeks. The Waterside Workers’ Union, Harbour Board Employees’ Union and the board agreed at the first meeting of the new container terminal negotiating committee last week to make their main object “to recover and restore the good name of the port of Auckland.” Mr Lorimer and the board’s chairman (Mr R. W. Carr) will meet Cabinet Ministers in Wellington today to discuss “progress on essential port operation matters and equipment” since three Cabinet Ministers visited Auckland six weeks ago. A 55,0001 b container fork hoist, two 16,0001 b container fork hoists, and 16 80001 b conventional fork hoists will be delivered by the end of December, starting with the two 16,0001 b machines in the next fortnight. EXPERT ADVICE An expert has suggested some revised procedures for the board’s new container base in Monash Street, which the board will occupy in December. The board has surveyed sites for an inland container depot to take pressure off the Fergusson wharf terminal. The board has acquired an extra 13,000 sq. ft of off- ! wharf storage at Wiri, i improved conventional ' cargo handling methods, ' and reduced the accumu- 1 lation in transit sheds I

and stores to prepare for the expected influx of cargo. Mr Lorimer said that from the end of July to August 19, ships were expected to bring 90,000 tons of inward general cargo, putting heavy pressure on transit sheds and warehouses. Today there were six ships in the stream as this conventional Luild-up began. The Cumberland alone was bringing 9000 tons. As a precaution against the second main wave of congestion now starting to affect the port, the 40,000 sq ft of storage at Wiri has been increased to 53,000 sq ft. The Wiri space is being let on a month-to-month basis, with a review in December. BREATHING SPACE A breathing space has allowed transit sheds and warehouses to be reduced from 80 per cent full to 50 per cent and there has been a significant improvement in delivery from warehouses, especially at Wiri, better organisation, and improved use of pallets. This could have been helped by improved cash flows reducing liquidity, problems.

Mr Lorimer said that last week-end, container terminal workers had achieved a rate of 20 containers an hour for a full shift, when they were relieved of road and rail loading. Recently the average hourly handling rate had dropped as low as 10. Contrary to the popular impression, there had not been any slowing in the men’s work rate, Mr Lorimer; said. When equipment was' not available and a ship could not be worked this in-! flated the delay time and lowered the average number handled.