This edition of Waterline contains the March quarter 1998 container stevedoring productivity indicators, which coincide with the period immediately prior to the recent waterfront dispute involving Patrick stevedoring operations.

• Waterline No 15
  
  water_015.pdf
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Observant readers of Waterline may be curious about why the June quarter 1998 stevedoring productivity indicators appear to be normal regardless of the dispute involving Patrick and the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA).

In Waterline 16, the BTE commented on the Australian container transport system's ability to adapt to a significant reduction in capacity caused by the industrial dispute between Patrick and the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA). The BTE questioned the strength of the argument for further container terminal investment in Australia based on the grounds of capacity shortages.

Stevedoring productivity, waterfront reliability, port Interface cost index, port performance and crew to berth ratios.

Stevedoring productivity, waterfront reliability, costal shipping permits and crew to berth ratios.

Stevedoring productivity, waterfront reliability, port Interface cost index, port performance non-financial and crew to berth ratios.

Stevedoring productivity, coastal shipping permits, coastal freight in Australia, crew to berth ratios and waterfront reliability.

The national crane rate productivity in the December quarter 1999, as measured by the five-port average, exceeded the rate for the December quarter 1998, but was lower than rates achieved for the first three quarters of 1999.

The BTE has developed a general framework for undertaking port impact studies in Australia, with a case study of the Port of Fremantle measuring the impact of port-related activities on the Western Australian economy in 1998–99.

Compared with 1998–99, the 1999–2000 5-port total container traffic, measured in TEUs, increased by 14% to 3.14 million TEUs.