DCT gets the thumbs up as volumes start building up

Harbour carriers praise communication efforts ALAN PEAT THE CHRISTMAS rush has got under way at the Port of Durban, according to FTW contacts in the city – but congestion at the port is not expected to be of critical proportions this year. “The volumes were up at pretty near record levels at the Durban container terminal (DCT) in September,” said Allister Donald, chairman of the port liaison committee (PLC), “and the projections were that October’s figures could break last year’s record numbers.” John Hyde of SA Port Operations (Sapo) confirmed this, telling FTW that the DCT was “just 200 boxes short of a record 110 000 containers handled in September”. And, while a one day strike in the last week of the month and strong winds took their toll on volumes handled, he expected October to again come close to the 110 000 figure – some 8% up on last year’s record level. Donald agreed that the strike had not helped the issue, and production was certainly lost because of the high winds. “But,” he said, “the peak season is definitely coming into play, and is in line with everyone’s expectations.” Meanwhile, the Durban harbour carriers’ section of the SA Association of Freight Forwarders (Saaff) also notes things getting busier with the pre-Christmas rush. “There has been a pick-up already,” said vice-chairman, Kevin Martin of Freightliner, “but we expect the real crunch to come later.” He also felt that communication between Sapo and the harbour carriers was getting much better. “At the Durban PLC meetings,” he said, “the port management is actually listening to what we say. The carriers also got two weeks notice from Sapo of that intended strike in October, which, Martin added, allowed the trucking companies to make some contingency plans. “It’s a vast improvement on what things were in years past,” he said, “when the port authorities just utterly ignored the private sector.” Donald is also much more positive about port management’s attitude. “The management at the terminal is now pretty strong and thorough, and the port was, for example, very flexible about the strike, when they allowed us an extra day of free storage.” He also feels that port staff and equipment are now performing at a better rate “We are fairly confident that the productivity levels are improving,” Donald told FTW, “and there has been a significant improvement in equipment capacity and in the repair and maintenance of the cranes.” He does see the possibility of some delays as the peak season reaches its heights, but he feels that this year things will not get out of hand. “The right mechanics are in place to keep things under control,” he said.