Ocean container carriers have implemented slow steaming (reduced vessel speeds) in recent years to improve fuel efficiency and lower greenhouse gas emissions. However, many shippers oppose the practice due to increased pipeline inventory associated with longer transit times. Given this conflict,...

The article illustrates the results of a research project aimed at identifying the main economic and industrial characteristics of the port system of the Friuli Venezia Giulia (FVG) Region, Italy, and the role it plays within the economy. Combining a top-down and bottom-up approach, based on...

Bunker fuel costs could account for 50–60 per cent of a ship's total operating cost in times of high fuel prices. The volatility of the bunker market over recent years has contributed to significant instability of cash flows for shipping lines. In this study, we consider two of the bunker fuel...

It is generally accepted that firms that pursue sound quality management practices will become more competitive due to enhanced business excellence and performance. However, relatively little research has studied the relationships between quality management practices and organizational...

Ports provide a number of logistical choices concerning storage, onward transport and postponement. We investigate the flexibility offered by ports of a central location with respect to hinterland transport. This is illustrated through a case in which a number of alternative strategies are...

This article considers the effectiveness of a truck appointment system in improving yard efficiency in a container terminal. This research uses the truck appointment information obtained from an appointment system to improve import container retrieval operation and reduce container rehandles by...

Although shipping companies assert that the majority of their lines work to a schedule with fixed days of arrival and departure which are programmed on a weekly basis, the demand which container terminals face is characterized by a degree of uncertainty. Up to now, the analysis of cargo handling...

Numerous options are being considered in practice, and have been captured in theoretical research, for increasing container terminal capacity. These include new stacking and handling technologies, optimizing yard space allocation and creating empty container depots outside of terminals to...

This article demonstrates that panel data estimation methods can be applied to derive operating costs for the highly regulated car ferry industry in Norway. The balanced data set includes 360 observations of ferry crossings from 1995 to 2005. Compared with cross-sectional results from earlier...