YouSaid · the spoken record

Gene Seroka

lines on the record: 45
first: 2021-08-02
most recent: 2021-08-02
sittings or episodes: 1
sources: podcast

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“Well, thank you both, Joe and Tracy, for the opportunity, Laura, for running the program today. Really appreciate the chance to get some of the information out there.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“A collective bargaining agreement, but I think there's some opportunity to add a little bit in the mornings, a little bit later at night, and get the truckers and others confident that we could move the cargo through and service them. That's all going to play into this as well. But this is going to be a strong second half of the year. I don't see us chipping down too much on these anchorage numbers beyond what we've been attempting to do so far. We're about half of where we were at the highest point. We got down to single digits. And then the South China folks came back to work off of their third wave of COVID. So we're going to keep watching the incoming and try to take advantage of all the opportunities to push the cargo through. We're going to be in this for a while.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“But it's hampering the rest of us. And I had an outlook that basically said after Lunar New Year 2022 and into the first quarter, we'd start to see a leveling of this import freight, not a steep decline, but leveling because we as the American consumer would go back more wholly into the service sector, getting back on airplanes, going out to ball games and restaurants, going to the movies. And that may slow a little bit. So we may keep buying online for a while. We also have to look at, as I mentioned, squeezing all the opportunities out of the port complex that we can, but in unison with these other folks, the warehouses, the railroads, trucks, et cetera, and the shipping lines, I want to squeeze more productivity out of the port, meaning if we have to work”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“It'll be a while. There was a major retailer that told me that their inventory system, nationwide retailer with over 3,000 stores, said their inventory right now is at about 48% of an acceptable level. So even as we pass through these seasonal effects that I just mentioned, these guys are going to keep buying and buying and buying as we go into the latter part of the fall. We're going to get those last minute orders coming through and we're going to have to thread this needle from a mile away just about every transaction to get it done. What I do see Tracy is given where we stand right now with the delta variant, that's going to go a long way to telling us where we're going to wind up because we're starting to see here in Southern California and I follow this nationwide the number of diagnosed illnesses are going up rapidly hospitalizations even fatalities many of which unfortunately due to folks who are unvaccinated”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“But their output is higher than ever on record, so it's a matter of are you matching yourself up against aspirations that may not be attained versus are you just really blowing out numbers that no one's ever seen on the face of the earth to how do you get the American consumer in a good place? And that's why building confidence within your supply chain. We also loved the president's executive order on supply chain. Here again, it's putting focus where we need it to, whether it be agriculture, the chips that Tracy mentioned and those going into cars and washers and dryers, just about everything we have today, we've got to get a line of sight on what this means. And there is a difference in the supply chain between sourcing and procurement, transportation, the chain itself, the delivery and distribution.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“The look at what we see right now, Joe, is that we're pivoting this moment between this surge and our traditional peak season. So we're starting to see back-to-school products, fall fashion, even Halloween items start to come in. And yes, to answer your question, a number of retailers have told me they're trying their level best to pull forward inventory, get it in a little earlier. My advice to families and friends who ask me, buy your holiday gifts a little bit earlier this year as well. Get online, go to the store, try to preplan. I know I'm a last minute guy, but even I'm going to have to pivot a little bit this year. But also what we're seeing, and this comes directly from the merchandisers at these big retail chains, is that their manufacturers are behind on their orders as well. I mean, you think about everything that's happened over the last 17 to 18 months.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“I'll go on record and say no Christmas will not be disrupted, it will happen on december twenty fifth again this year. But we're going to have to do a lot of jumping through hoops like we've done in the past to help out folks. I'll give you the example of the Toy importers, right? Most of their revenue is made up over a 10-week span, even less in some cases during the course of a year. And this is everyone from the large multinationals to the small family-owned business that's maybe third or fourth generation today or the folks that are just starting up their companies. So we understand the importance. And with all the folks that are paying attention to supply chain today, we don't shy away from the spotlight.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“I think from a prognosticator standpoint, it would have been pretty tough to hit a royal flush on all of these issues at one time.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“That you're going to wind up in a situation like we are right now. But I think the industry generally has managed this unprecedented volume better than most had expected. We usually run a supply chain under the radar where folks don't want to talk to us on shows like this unless something's going wrong. And our business day to day is just that. It's moving America's economy. It's keeping people employed and making sure those store shelves and those front porches have our groceries and toys and goods on them. And when it doesn't go that way, I think in the industry you say if it bleeds it leads and that's what we've been seeing that folks are now interested because you've got shortages across the board and whether it be the advent of the price of lumber doubling and tripling the way that housing starts look, the purchases of homes, and the folks who wanted to redo theirs.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Yeah, sure. A number of things start with our natural convening powers to bring people together. As I mentioned to you, our industry tends to be a little bit siloed. Private sector companies really work with their customers.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“That consecutively, week in and week out, then we're doing our job here. Right now, that's not the case because of all those congestion points that we've talked about during the show, but that's the task at hand. So the bigger vessel can be managed. Adjustments have to be made landside. They have to be made on the water side. But the work of these longshoremen, women, and logisticians in our marketplace in Southern California, were the institutional knowledge, I would also say, is world-class has been proven to be a net positive for us.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“When I started off in the industry, a big ship was 4,500 container units. Today, the port of Los Angeles fortunately, with a lot of forethought from my predecessors, has been able to welcome the largest ships in the world at twenty three thousand container units and work them without a hitch, but they take longer. So you've got to line up more trains. You've got to have more land on your terminals to service them because you've got more containers. You've got to be able to get truck gates in and out over a wider timeframe than just working eight to five during the day as we had done for decades in the past. So there has to be adjustment all the way along the way. But the key for the liner shipping companies is if they can put a six ship rotation in from North Asia to Los Angeles and they can leave Shanghai every Monday morning at 0800 and do”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Yeah, I think it's a variable in the equation across a number of areas. First, to answer the question, I think it's one that has to be thought of very carefully because you think, Big Ship, you load a lot of containers and then you go from there. But as you rightly say, you've got landside opportunities. You've got timing with schedules, et cetera. But I'll give you one stat that I think I'm most impressed with here. And that's 11,000. At the port of Los Angeles, we're averaging an exchange of 11,000 container units per vessel call, which today is the best in the world. So even as the ships have gotten larger and wider, as you say, Joe, coming in here the work that's done for every vessel call, we're moving more cargo per vessel than anybody else on the face of the earth. Now, that comes with adaptation as well.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“And at the proper time, President Barack Obama dispatched then U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez to bring it home over the last seven days and help complete the tentative contract. So there'll be a lot of people around. There'll be some of us around who have got pretty good experience and want to keep that cargo moving. But I will leave it to the experts on both sides of the table who we work with very closely on a daily basis to shepherd us through this contract negotiation, get us out the other side with good worker protections and companies that can move the cargo swiftly for the American consumer.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Great importance, health and safety of the worker, making sure that their paid adjust and we have an opportunity for the proper transitioning as technology continues to be prevalent in our industry. But we'll also see areas discussed, I'm sure, concerning robotics and automation, which is always a flashpoint in these discussions. And then we'll see what the future of work looks like. I believe there's going to be a day in the not too distant future where mechanics, as an example, who are skilled on multi-tiered levels will be operating with computers and not just wrenches. We'll have to make sure that there is training and development opportunity, upskilling and reskilling of our labor force to tackle the needs of the future supply chain. So all of that and more will probably be discussed, and we'll be doing our level best. You may remember that Marigar Setti and I were pretty visible during the last negotiation.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Yeah, the ILWU Pacific Maritime Association contract expires June 30th of 2022. And while I do not speak for the Union or the Employers Association, I think that what we'll see is coming off a spirit of camaraderie like we've never witnessed before. When COVID first struck and we went into the emergency orders trying to figure out who was essential and who was not, the Port of Los Angeles jumped into action. We got cleaning materials and solutions to make sure equipment and communications devices were safe to hand off between work efforts and making sure that our workers had the necessary protective equipment to be safe on the job, understood the medical recommendations of the state of the county state and federal agencies. As we take that momentum and move into negotiations, I'm hopeful that folks will work on the key issues that are of”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Suppliers we think will help stimulate that trade and break down some of the barriers to get the American export companies back in touch with their overseas customers. So there's a little bit of both Tracy where we're trying to work on those core areas of employment here, but also trying to expand employment and jobs creation in other areas that need it today.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Experts. We had the physical distancing, the face coverings and gloves, but also smaller teams, so we weren't bunched in the same capacities that we were before the virus started to spread. So that in part, we believe, had an effect on how slow the movement through the warehouses, distribution and fulfillment centers was, and why they filled up so quickly during this surge. So all of that is important to us. But with 6.5 million Americans still out of work compared to pre-COVID days, we think there are opportunities, and we've said this to the Secretary of Commerce. Gina Romondo, to look at a national export policy. Export jobs in general compared to other segments pay about 17, 18% more than their competitors, getting folks back into the areas of agriculture, which is so big here in California throughout the country, manufacturing broadly the auto sector in tiers.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“You've got different segments of folks, and our dock workers under the International Longshore and Warehouse Union are about 15,000 members strong here in Southern California alone. They have about 8,000 registered members, meaning strong career folks with skilled practitioner certification. And then you've got about 7,000 apprentices or what we call casuals that are trying to build their skills, hours and certification to become full-time employees. Those folks have been extremely strong during this surge. In fact, I'm told now by the Employers Association that the average Rank and File dock worker is averaging between five and a half and six days of work every week since this surge began last June. Then you've got the warehouse workers that were really hampered by COVID because they typically work in teams in closed spaces. And with the advice of the medical”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, this is one of the areas that we focus on a lot, and whether it's equity for drivers, the ability to get them affordable, cleaner trucks to operate, or the amount of time they spend here at the port simply waiting, taking away from their 11 hours of daily regulated service by the federal government. So all of that comes into play. And then from a round numbers perspective, the average age of a trucker in the country is about 57 and they have a 20% attrition rate per year. So this is an area that we really want to boost up. And we're working very closely with a number of trucking associations as well as the private sector itself to try to make this a career.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“On and off the vessels. It also stops the use of our alternative marine power, which was designed to plug in a ship to the electrical grid and turn off all but the auxiliary engines, saving thousands of tons of diesel emissions with every port call. So the impacts here are pretty wide and far, whether it be transportation, environment, or a combination of both.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“We could do another show, Joe, on climate change alone. But what I will tell you is this, that many more folks in our industry at the highest levels down the family businesses are very concerned about that and what they can do to make this a better place. Second, when it comes to the wildfires in California and the drought, we've seen a couple of things happen. Number one, it will impact rail and truck service if we can't get over the Cajone Pass or we can't go out the 10 freeway to the inland empire where the majority of these warehouses are located. The other piece that many people don't see here outside of California is that when we get to these extreme heat waves, the governor and the public utilities commission has been shutting down power and that power gets shut down at ports and it stops the use of our cranes that lift the containers on.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“At those interior points. For example, the Union Pacific Railroad recently slowed down cargo to Chicago because they had twenty five miles of trains sitting outside of Global Four Joliet, where cargo owners were not picking up that inbound product the way they had used him. So it slows down the whole system. And now you see it from Chicago to Los Angeles back to the water and to Asia.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“normally planned to do so. And here in Southern California, underneath that container are trailer wheels or chassis, as we call them in the industry. If those are dislocated for nine days out on the street with a container, the next round of imports have a difficult time matching up those trailer wheels to get the box out of the port property. The third piece on what we call these dwell times is related to the rail system. And with a paucity of exports as we've described so far, this one-way trade is hitting our western railroads successively each and every day. There used to be a time when we had ten ships coming into port every day that you'd have a day or two to kind of clean up the terminal yard, get your rail cars managed, put them in place with the engine power and the crewing. Now it's an all-out departure from Los Angeles to the interior of the country. And at the same time, the cargo is sitting longer.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“To seven days to get to destination. So you're not seeing these incremental moves in specific areas of time. What you do see is the points of rest. And that's been a problem for us here in Los Angeles. For example, we've got ships at anchor because all those other nodes are backed up, as I mentioned to you. But once it container gets on the ground at our marine terminal here in Los Angeles, it's sitting for an average of five days, pre-COVID or pre-surge, it sat for two to two and a half days. So the velocity has been slowed down and there's so much cargo coming in. Folks don't have a place to put it. Once it leaves our port facility by truck, it's sitting an average of about eight to nine days now, which is nearly three times what it was pre-surge. And that adds a tremendous amount of cycle time. So when folks start talking about a limited supply of containers, it's because they're sitting longer than they're.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“A couple of fronts. I think on the digitization spot, folks want to know where their shipments are at what time so they can not only trace them compared to a pro forma schedule, but also enact what we call exception management. So if something's going against a schedule or not in line with arrival dates, the importer of record can act on that and take decisive steps to move the cargo along a little bit quicker. But the interesting thing about the container is that it naturally sits for some time. It's not like us moving on and off airplanes or driving on freeways and tollways. A container loads on a ship in Asia and it will sit in that same position for anywhere from 15 to 30 days before it reaches its shore of discharge. Once it reaches there, there'll be a spot for it specifically to move, and then it'll move on a train as our gateway being the example. And that'll take another five.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“That particular open reservation to avoid their wait times during the day and maximize their productivity. Thirty percent of containers are sitting because truckers are not showing up. And for a myriad of reasons, not just that individual driver or that trucking company, we've got to get the information so precise that these folks know how to”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“People need to join our digitization project. And that's going to be a must if we're going to have everyone filtering out through this information flow to make sure they're prepared better than they are today. Second, we've put numerous incentives in place to reduce trucker wait times, the time they spend at the port, and how quickly they can move out. In addition, we've encouraged our truck community to move containers in and out at the same time, bring an import out of the port while dropping off that export at the same time so as not to waste that precious gate time. We also threw our digitization program, have a look at a port wide reservation system that will show us exactly where we have opportunities to expand service. For example, right now on our night shifts that go from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m., 30% of our truck reservation system go unused. So we've got to drive truckers to”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“In and out of this port complex. Working with all these private sector companies, everybody works in their own silo. So what we've tried to do is create our nation's first and still only port community system co-created with WABTEC called the port optimizer, and it's meant to be a system of systems to aggregate data so folks don't have to hunt and peck around dozens and dozens of websites. And with our partnership through United States Customs and Border Protection, we receive data some 40 days before a vessel comes into Los Angeles. So our partners through this information sharing concept can see what's coming in, plan their staffing and asset positioning better than anyone else. And with that, I think we've gotten a leg up where vessel productivity is up 50%. We're moving more cargo in and out of this port than we ever have before, but there are still adjustments we have to make.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“What can we do to ease congestion? We've been working on that around the clock with our business partners, with government officials. Marcetti and I were just on a nationwide conference call with Secretary Pete Budigage of the Department of Transportation with representatives from agriculture, the FMC, and Maritime Administration plus many others. We've outlined what we're doing right now. And number one, we believe that digitization is going to carry us through this. Think of a place this complex with this myriad of customers, about 200,000 importers and exporters. No one of which has more than a 5% market share. 18,000 truckers, 12 marine terminals, 20 vessel operators. And a look at railroad systems that are unlike anywhere else in the world where we have about 100 trains per day, no less than three miles in length.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Good questions. One, the numbers here have been going up since last June. No, we've not lost any market share to other ports. But most of the industry observers, Tracy, who look at this information lag by about six to eight weeks. So you're not going to see anything just this moment. But in watching our numbers, again, averaging 900,000 container units a month crossing a million in May, very unlikely that we'll lose market share in this snapshot in time.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Post versus about $1.2 billion here on the West Coast. That's got to change. And what we've asked the Biden administration and the officials are to look at investments that will have the greatest economic good for the country, and that leads you to one place, Los Angeles.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Two other logisticians and business folks around this supply chain. So it's a very important part of our economy. And when there are problems here, it is felt across a wide swath of the working population. On the notion of infrastructure, there's a lot to like about the American jobs plan. And we've been following very closely talking to administration officials back in Washington about the bipartisan negotiations that continue to this very hour on how we were going to push out money to all these important areas, including right now at its latest rendition, about $16 billion related to ports and inland waterways throughout the country.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Back to the market share position Los Angeles right now is at about 2021 of all container cargo traffic moving in and out of the United States so a healthy number one position in that segment that we've held now for 21 consecutive years. So again matched up with the fact that the cargo and passengers traversing this port reach each and every one of our nation's 435 congressional districts. I would say all those numbers combined mean that this is a conversation of national economic significance. We also employ as part of this port complex one in nine jobs in the five counties Southern California region. That means about a million paychecks every week go to people who have jobs related to this port whether it's the large manufacturing community in Los Angeles County, our dock workers, truckers and warehouse personnel that I mentioned”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Sure, both are good questions. Broad picture on the market share percentages. While both ports, Long Beach and Los Angeles are municipal agencies of their respective cities, most in the industry observers, users of the port, customers and transport service companies all see this as one port complex. And this complex represents 40% of our nation's imports and about 30% of our nation's exports. Now, the interesting take here, Joe and Tracy, is that before 2002, we had 50% of”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“We lease out property to these private sector companies and we make our money by every container that is moved over these docks. And that revenue stream then, as I mentioned, goes back into three major segments of port infrastructure, both physical as well as digital. Our community efforts on public access, retail dining, entertainment, public infrastructure, and then thirdly, the environmental strategy that has been in place now for the better part of 17 years, which has witnessed a reduction in diesel particulate matter by 90% over that time.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Probably two questions there, one being operations and two being economics. One, as a landlord port defined by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, we manage the property and we lease it out to private sector companies who manage the transportation business. So those would be primarily marine terminal operators who welcome in the liner shipping companies to work their vessels and move cargo throughout the nation's four hundred thirty five congressional districts with product moving in and out of Los Angeles. So the private sector companies are responsible for designing schedules, vessel berthing windows, priority lists, and how they physically want to move cargo in and out while working very closely with the International Longshore Warehouse Union for the dock workers, truck drivers warehouse operators, et cetera. From the financial perspective,”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Joe, the port of Los Angeles is a municipal agency of the city. I report to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti directly. He has appointed a five-member harbor commission that works with me on all policy issues and helps drive business. We are a nonprofit agency where all monies and revenue sources from our customers coming in are reinvested in our ports infrastructure. Our community with respect to public access and our environmental strategy. We hold these 7,500 acres of property in trust for the people of California based on the state's Tidelands Trust Regulation that was an unintended consequence of the state joining the Union.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Catch the next round of lucrative imports faster than ever. So there's been a commercial decision made. And then thirdly, the strength of the US dollar is also continuing to impact us. And while it's so important and so good for our economy, in many, many ways, it's not good from a competitiveness standpoint because we're going up against other trading nations that have better exchange rates and are beaten us to the punch. So we know Ryan likes to comment on a lot of things in the industry. I can tell you what goes on here and through the nation's largest gateway. We're right now sending back about 300,000 empty container units per month to every 100,000 export units. We're about five to one imports to exports and in more normal times, Tracy, that's about two and a half imports to every one export.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Well, start off with the major solve for in the industry is that most of our imports go to metropolitan areas and many of our exports emanate from rural America. So as an example, we bring in a ton of product into Chicago, and then we still as an industry have to cater to the American farmer in the Red River Valley in North Dakota. So how do you get that empty container chassis rail service and align it with ship service from Chicago up to someplace outside of Fargo where a farmer wants to load a bunch of containers? That's number one difficulty. Number two is that with all these imports coming in now, there has been a look by the liner shipping companies that they need to get empties evacuated back to the manufacturing location to pre-position those containers to”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Yeah, primarily. And as I stated, the choppiness of Really moved us out of kilter. And Tracy, what you've seen is basically, and I think Dan Mafay, the chairman of the Federal Maritime Commission, put it best, it's like putting 10 lanes of traffic into five. We've been breaking records every month. We surpassed one million container units in a month, which was a first for any port in the Western Hemisphere. We surpassed 10 million container units in a fiscal year first time ever in the Western Hemisphere. So we're pushing through a lot of cargo. We just have much more coming at us than ever before. And when these nodes of the transportation system start getting clogged up, they back up all the way to the waterfront.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“So the next ship that comes in can only unload so much cargo because there's no room to put it. The ship after that winds up sitting outside our breakwater at anchor. And today we've got 26 container vessels at anchor outside that breakwater destined for both the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, the twin ports of San Pedro Bay. The average stay out there is five days. It's about half of what it was at its worst point back in February, but compared to what we normally like to see, zero ships at anchor, high levels of fluidity of cargo. This pandemic induced buying surge is something the likes of which we've never seen before.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“We're welcoming in about 15 vessels a day compared to 10 before COVID and this buying surge started, but all parts of the supply chain have been kind of stacked up. The warehouses are full, and remember, we've got about 2 billion square feet of warehousing from the shores of the Pacific out to the Mojave Desert here in Southern California. They're overflowing. If those warehouses are overflowing, about a third of our cargo goes to them directly, so those containers sit as warehouses on wheels. Our marine terminals, of which we operate today seven for container business out of the 27 here at the nation's largest port in Los Angeles, those terminals are operating at about 95% of land usage. Physical design, full capacity is 80% utilization.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“That area of around Lunar New Year in January of 2020, the bottom really fell out completely with the advent of the COVID-19 virus. The Chinese economy shut down manufacturing sector was shuttered, and then soon thereafter we went into safer at home orders, and our volume dropped another nineteen percent up through May. Then suddenly the American consumer found that they could buy a lot more online, they could make a family outing to a big box retailer or home improvement store, and our retail goods started going through the roof. And since then, we've averaged about 900,000 container units a month every month. That used to be a good single month in our traditional peak season. So where we stand today is that birth productivity, our vessels are up 50% compared to pre-COVID times.”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source
“Joe, the story really goes back over three years ago to the introduction of trade tariffs and a pretty unique take on the trade policy by the previous administration of Washington. Created a lot of choppiness in the industry. Folks were importing big numbers to get inside of tariff milestone dates and taxes that American companies were paying on those imported goods. Similarly, and at the same time, we started to see retaliatory tariffs put in place, specifically by China, which have impacted our farmers, manufacturers, and our automotive sector broadly. Flash forward to the end of 2019, we went off a cliff because of those trade policies that were in place. Our business dropped by about 16%, and most folks were looking for a pretty mundane year 2020. As we got into”
2021-08-02 · Odd Lots · Gene Seroka on the Logistical Logjam at the Port of LA · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT · source