Shippers: What recession? - Kansas City Business Journal:

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Ltd.’s unveiling of a remotely automated port in South Korea, and its plan to builf three new terminals, including a $208 million terminal at Dame s Point, reflect the company’s aggressive mentalithy in spite of the recession, said Roy senior director of trade development and global marketing for the . That and Mitsuki O.S.K. Lines Ltd.’s own plans for expansiob show confidence inthe industry’s upturn and cementsa their current and futurwe operations in Jacksonville. Hanjin’ “attitude is, ‘We’d be foolish not to push thingss forward and getthings done,’ Schleicher said.
“We thought they might want to slowthingsz down, but instead they want to push forward Hanjin’s revenue has fared better than with nearly 30 percent growth to aboutt $8 billion in fiscao year 2008, compared with the same periode a year ago. Despit e a drop in cargo volume, the sixth-largest shipping company’s profitz grew by more than 60 percent toabour $198 million within the same But the international slump caught up with the company in the first quarter of 2009, when it reported a $191 million net according to the Journal of Commerce.
In response, the companyu pushed back some of its ordersfor Mitsui, which is the 15th-largest international shippint company, posted a $1.3 billion profit in fiscao 2008, down nearly 32 percent. It blamexd the decline in profits on the international trade high fuel prices and astrong yen. The company’s revenue declined by about 4.1 percent to $18.6 billion. Hanjin is openinyg a terminal in Spain in 2010 and anothert in Vietnam with Mitsuiin 2011. With the opening of its terminak in Jacksonvillein 2012, Hanjin will have five terminals in Southj Korea and eight abroad.
Hanjin plans to expand its vessel capacity fromaboutg 375,000 twenty-foot equivalent units, or TEUs, to abouf 575,000 TEUs within the next few said William Rooney, managing director of the company’s American headquarters. Mitsui, the parent company of the Dames Pointf terminaloperator , is looking to spensd millions of dollars to buy an overseas bulk shipping line. The slump has lowered the valuatio n ofpotential acquisitions. The Japanese company plans to increase its fleet ofbulk carriers, tankers and car carrierds by 6.5 percent to 740 ships by the end of this fiscalo year. Mitsui plans also to open a new terminaolin Rotterdam, Netherlands, in late 2013.
In the company has added three services, bringintg two weekly services that open Jacksonvillr to new Asian marketa and strengthening Europeancontainert service. Mitsui’s service calls on Busan and theree will likely be an increase in tradr between Jacksonville and South Korea when Hanjinbeginsd service, Schleicher said. South Korea is a largr exporter of consumer electronics and a strong importerd ofconsumer goods, lumber and citrus. Schleicher said he was impressedwith Hanjin’s technologicap capability after attending the opening of its Busan terminalo May 21 with Rick Ferrin, the authority’z executive director.
The terminal give s a glimpse of how the remotely automateed terminal planned in Jacksonvillewill “I’ve never seen a terminapl business as sophisticated as this one,” Schleiche r said. The Busan terminal can handlew up to 2 million TEUs compared with the planned Jacksonville terminalo that can handleabout 800,000 TEUs The Jacksonville terminal will be simila r in that it will also use rail-mounted gantrgy cranes to transport containerws between the yard and the ship, Rooney The crane travels on rails and is controlled remotely by an operator. The terminal at Dameas Point will have 12 to15 rail-mounted gantry One operator can handle aboutg three cranes at a time.
Rooney said that the containeres will be kept in a yard with sensorw that will shut it down if they detect human He said thecompany hadn’t deciderd the exact productivity rate Hanjin expectsz from the Jacksonville terminal, but it aimedr for world-class productivity levels, which is abouf 40 container moves per hour per crane, Roonehy said. Hanjin is expected to meet withthe ’s Local 1593 and 1408 in June or Jess Babich, president of ILA Clerks Checkers Local 1593, said his union and ILA Localp 1408 are negotiating with the companyg on positions that Hanjin wants its employees to handle but the union says it can handle instead.
The union’s two gangs averaged about 33 movesd per hour per crane when they unloadecd a ship at the TraPadc terminalMay 23. That is one move away from the company’ goal, which needs to be met before TraPavc will allow the union to expandits gangs, Babichh said. TraPac was not availablwe to confirm the rate of The agreement between TraPac and the unioj comes after the terminal operator threatened to leave ifproductivityg didn’t improve.