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Getting tough over weight at the gate may divert cargo, says exporter
PORTS that insist on verified gross mass VGM at the gate will likely get the short shrift from exporters like STIHL Inc, maker of chainsaws another hand-held construction equipment, reports American Shipper.
"If there is a port that said, 'We will not accept a box,' we may divert freight away from that port," said STIHL export manager Murray Bishop in a panel discussion at the Virginia Maritime Association's annual conference in Norfolk.
Mr Bishop's remarks are made in relation to the United Nations' regulation requiring verified container weight before loading by July 1. This is the result of an amendment to the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention.
STIHL, of Virginia Beach, will only use ports with flexible policies towards meeting new international maritime safety guidelines for carriers to obtain the certified weight of containers prior to vessel loading.
Ports that won't allow export containers through the gate if the truck arrives without the verified gross mass (VGM) on file could lose the company's business.
Exporters, many in agriculture, are upset that the new procedures add extra cost and complexity to a process they argue wasn't broken in the first place.
Exporters already provide weight data to meet customs and commercial requirements and opponents argue that in the US overweight containers have rarely, if ever, contributed to an accident.
"I feel very strongly that any port that does not accept the container at the gate without a VGM is really doing a massive disservice to the entire export community because it's going to back those gates up, it's going to delay sailing," Mr Bishop said.
"If there is a port that said, 'We will not accept a box,' we may divert freight away from that port," said STIHL export manager Murray Bishop in a panel discussion at the Virginia Maritime Association's annual conference in Norfolk.
Mr Bishop's remarks are made in relation to the United Nations' regulation requiring verified container weight before loading by July 1. This is the result of an amendment to the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention.
STIHL, of Virginia Beach, will only use ports with flexible policies towards meeting new international maritime safety guidelines for carriers to obtain the certified weight of containers prior to vessel loading.
Ports that won't allow export containers through the gate if the truck arrives without the verified gross mass (VGM) on file could lose the company's business.
Exporters, many in agriculture, are upset that the new procedures add extra cost and complexity to a process they argue wasn't broken in the first place.
Exporters already provide weight data to meet customs and commercial requirements and opponents argue that in the US overweight containers have rarely, if ever, contributed to an accident.
"I feel very strongly that any port that does not accept the container at the gate without a VGM is really doing a massive disservice to the entire export community because it's going to back those gates up, it's going to delay sailing," Mr Bishop said.
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