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Midwest containers via Florida

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Posted by rdamon on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 4:27 PM

And none of those ads talked about $1000's of dollars off or 'employee pricing'.

They are selling cars at or above MSRP and only producing limited models loaded with features.

They will be fine .. 

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Posted by Backshop on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 4:26 PM

Murphy Siding

 

 
Backshop

Those suggesting that this port or that port can bail out LA/LB haven't seen how large that port is, compared to other NA ports.

 

 

 

Los Angeles and Long Beach ports are all that seem to make the news. Are the other west coast ports in the same predicament?

 

 

I'm sure they are having problems, just they aren't as major or as visible.  I was commenting on the fact that even several other ports couldn't take up a meaningful volume of LA/LB's backup.  Here are the top 10 ports in the US.  Look who #1 and 2 are, and how far the volume drop is to the next Pacific port.

10 Largest Ports in the United States - Largest.org

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Posted by Backshop on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 4:20 PM

Convicted One

Would I want to be a manufacturer spending tens of millions of dollars to advertise cars that I cannot manufacture? 

The shortage of chips won't last forever.  Corporations plan years into the future.

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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 4:09 PM

Murphy Siding
Would you want to be the car maker who didn't advertise because you couldn't produce enough cars,

Would I want to be a manufacturer spending tens of millions of dollars to advertise cars that I cannot manufacture?

 

But, more particularly, IF I cannot manufacture enough cars to meet demand, isn't advertising superfluous?

The stories that I'm seeing is that used cars only 1 or two years old are reselling for more than they originally listed for. If demand is that piqued...where is the tangible benefit of advertising? Keeping your brand in front of the consumer?

 

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 3:16 PM

BaltACD
 
Murphy Siding
      I spoke with another brilliant guy that had all the answers yesterday. He was the driver of a crew van that brought a switchman to switch our car in. He said this port thing is going to go away pretty soon- as soon as harvest season is over. He said that they ship all the corn from the midwest to China in those containers. Once all the containers get back to China, everything is fixed. Dunce He didn't mention his momma, or boxes of chocolates. Mischief

 

Was the crew van driver Warren Buffet?  If it was Warren I would believe him, otherwise the advice is worth what you paid for it.

 

Well, I didn't ask him his name. I guess I could google some photos of Buffet and see if the tatoos matched. Clown

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 3:14 PM

Convicted One
 
Murphy Siding
the car companies probably paid for the ads out of lasts year's budget

 

You feel comfortable making such broad sweeping assumptions...often I take it?

The ads persisted throughout 2020 AND 2121, and the current ads feature models that were not even built when the pandemic first started.  

I'd buy your argument for ads that ran throughout 2020. Not for the ones featuring 2022 models I'm seeing now.

 

 

Geez, I'm going to sound like a trucker here, painting everything through the perspective of my little corner of the world...

      Our company wizards paid for a bunch of 2021 advestising out of 2020 budget money. That apparently was because they wanted to charge the expense against last year's profits and because the TV folks were offering some deep, deep discounts if you paid far in advance. We have a certain number of advertising minutes to burn up. The TV people don't care what we advertise. The folks pushing the ads pointed out that the local car dealers were all doing the same thing, blah, blah, blah. So maybe there's something to the idea?

     If I owned a car manufacturing company and bought into that same super deal, I'd be advertising the 2022 models. What the heck- they spent all that money on developing the ads, why not? Presumably, the chip shortage affects all car makers to some extent. Would you want to be the car maker who didn't advertise because you couldn't produce enough cars, when your competitor who couldn't get them either was filling the airwaves with ads for 2022 models?

     2021 is all about adapting.

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Posted by azrail on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 2:33 PM

Preordering autos?

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Posted by BaltACD on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 2:29 PM

Murphy Siding
      I spoke with another brilliant guy that had all the answers yesterday. He was the driver of a crew van that brought a switchman to switch our car in. He said this port thing is going to go away pretty soon- as soon as harvest season is over. He said that they ship all the corn from the midwest to China in those containers. Once all the containers get back to China, everything is fixed. Dunce He didn't mention his momma, or boxes of chocolates. Mischief

Was the crew van driver Warren Buffet?  If it was Warren I would believe him, otherwise the advice is worth what you paid for it.

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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 2:05 PM

Murphy Siding
the car companies probably paid for the ads out of lasts year's budget

You feel comfortable making such broad sweeping assumptions...often I take it?

The ads persisted throughout 2020 AND 2121, and the current ads feature models that were not even built when the pandemic first started.  

I'd buy your argument for ads that ran throughout 2020. Not for the ones featuring 2022 models I'm seeing now.

 

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 1:24 PM

Convicted One
 
Murphy Siding
He didn't mention his momma, or boxes of chocolates. 

 

 

It has similarly struck me as interesting how, despite the blatant insistence that chip shortages have curtailed auto manfacturer's ability to produce finished autos,  tv advertisments pushing new cars have persisted unrelenting throughout the pandemic.

Something about that doesn't add up.

 

Honestly, the car companies probably paid for the ads out of lasts year's budget. The TV folks say they can either run the ads or not run the ads; the price is the same and that check has already cleared the bank.

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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 1:14 PM

Murphy Siding
He didn't mention his momma, or boxes of chocolates. 

 

It has similarly struck me as interesting how, despite the blatant insistence that chip shortages have curtailed auto manfacturer's ability to produce finished autos,  tv advertisments pushing new cars have persisted unrelenting throughout the pandemic.

Something about that doesn't add up.

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 12:38 PM

      I spoke with another brilliant guy that had all the answers yesterday. He was the driver of a crew van that brought a switchman to switch our car in. He said this port thing is going to go away pretty soon- as soon as harvest season is over. He said that they ship all the corn from the midwest to China in those containers. Once all the containers get back to China, everything is fixed. Dunce He didn't mention his momma, or boxes of chocolates. Mischief

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 12:29 PM

Backshop

Those suggesting that this port or that port can bail out LA/LB haven't seen how large that port is, compared to other NA ports.

 

Los Angeles and Long Beach ports are all that seem to make the news. Are the other west coast ports in the same predicament?

Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.

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Posted by Backshop on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 11:42 AM

Those suggesting that this port or that port can bail out LA/LB haven't seen how large that port is, compared to other NA ports.

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 11:12 AM

SALfan1

I read somewhere that there has been a "100-year surge" in people buying stuff, which I have difficulty believing, but I'll grant that there may have been a significant increase in customer demand.  Please tell me if I'm wrong, but I think companies ordered whatever their automated inventory management systems told them to order, without any regard to whether they had enough warehouse or distribution center staff to handle the influx.  Too many people don't want that kind of job because it involves hard physical labor, and companies can't find enough people to fill those jobs.  So, when the containers showed up they couldn't be unloaded, stranding the containers and chassis.  The companies don't pick up their delivered containers because they can't handle the already-delivered ones, so containers back up in railyards or trucking company lots.  The problem is exacerbated by a shortage of truck drivers, another job people don't want because it involves actual work, plus California's less-than-ideal regulations and other issues.  If anyone disagrees, please speak up. 

 

OK, well I disagree. No one simply puts buying on autopilot and hopes for the best. I have a system that suggests what I should order, based on past history. Most any other business with inventory and sales has something similar. This is a tool. Knowing how many widgets I sold each year for the last 7 years doesn't tell me a thing about how many I might sell tomorrow. That's where experience comes into play. I have to factor in how many widgets I have now, how many I have on order, when they might come in, how many I have sold and when they need to be shipped. With all that info in front of me, I then use the time honored system of flipping a coin, and then I place orders.Clown

     In short, anybody that lets an automatic system buy for them will soon be automatically unemployed. The name of the game right now is being able to adapt. Each day brings a new challenge, and some of them are pretty ugly.

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Posted by Convicted One on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 9:52 AM

BaltACD
The USA is not in the position to call all the tunes - no matter what tune is to be called.

 

 

Acknowledged. But having a helmsman that at least knows how the ship is steered would be better than what we have.   I believe Nero is currently home fiddling with paternity leave.

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Posted by caldreamer on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 8:12 AM

Do not forget the Port Rupert container port in Vancouver, BC.  A few years ago they started a giant expansion of capacity.  CN & CP run from there to the midwest.  Forget about the LA ports move them north and then to the midwest.  There are four ports available to unload ships.

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Posted by narig01 on Wednesday, October 20, 2021 3:36 AM

Greyhounds, Port Manatee on Tampa Bay has a container operation for Bananas. It has handled dry containers on barges for Caribbean destinations in the past(1990's). Also Jacksonville has both ship and barge container facilities. I'm not sure about Miami.

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Posted by Euclid on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 9:47 PM

MidlandMike

 

 
Euclid

The real crisis looming is hyperinflation, and the blame will fall squarely on the hyper spending that we all will pay for.  Those in charge of the spending do not want to be blamed for the hyperinflation; and simply denying it is not working. 

So, it is telling that we should suddenly be served up a new crisis to take our minds off the 600-pound gorilla of hyperinflation.  And so conveniently, this new crisis, named "Supply Chain," is said to be our fault for buying too much, and also a sign of how successful our economic recovery is; and thus a reason why we should feel good about Supply Chain Crisis.  

 

 

 

Hyperinflation is defined as a 1000% inflation in a year, which is more than a couple orders of magnatude above what we are experiencing.

 

I said hyperinflation is looming.  It is not here now.  It is still preventable until we lock in the final massive spending that has been proposed.  

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Posted by MidlandMike on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 8:54 PM

Euclid

The real crisis looming is hyperinflation, and the blame will fall squarely on the hyper spending that we all will pay for.  Those in charge of the spending do not want to be blamed for the hyperinflation; and simply denying it is not working. 

So, it is telling that we should suddenly be served up a new crisis to take our minds off the 600-pound gorilla of hyperinflation.  And so conveniently, this new crisis, named "Supply Chain," is said to be our fault for buying too much, and also a sign of how successful our economic recovery is; and thus a reason why we should feel good about Supply Chain Crisis.  

 

Hyperinflation is defined as a 1000% inflation in a year, which is more than a couple orders of magnatude above what we are experiencing.

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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 8:43 PM

Convicted One
 
BaltACD
There may be a business opportunity, however, without some level of governmental 'power' from all the governments involved in the various supply chains there would be no 'power' to enforce the coordination. 

Having a Secretary of Transportation who was, at best, a mediocre mayor, likely isn't helping the problem.

The USA is not in the position to call all the tunes - no matter what tune is to be called.  At least this Secretary of Transportation is not on the Chinese take as the last one was.

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Posted by Convicted One on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 8:38 PM

BaltACD
There may be a business opportunity, however, without some level of governmental 'power' from all the governments involved in the various supply chains there would be no 'power' to enforce the coordination.

Having a Secretary of Transportation who was, at best, a mediocre mayor, likely isn't helping the problem.

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Posted by SALfan1 on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 8:30 PM

I read somewhere that there has been a "100-year surge" in people buying stuff, which I have difficulty believing, but I'll grant that there may have been a significant increase in customer demand.  Please tell me if I'm wrong, but I think companies ordered whatever their automated inventory management systems told them to order, without any regard to whether they had enough warehouse or distribution center staff to handle the influx.  Too many people don't want that kind of job because it involves hard physical labor, and companies can't find enough people to fill those jobs.  So, when the containers showed up they couldn't be unloaded, stranding the containers and chassis.  The companies don't pick up their delivered containers because they can't handle the already-delivered ones, so containers back up in railyards or trucking company lots.  The problem is exacerbated by a shortage of truck drivers, another job people don't want because it involves actual work, plus California's less-than-ideal regulations and other issues.  If anyone disagrees, please speak up. 

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Posted by Shadow the Cats owner on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 4:20 PM

The problem in California with trucks is twofold.  First off is AB5 or the so called Uber bill as it became known in the media.  90 percent of all port drivers are owner operators and owned their own trucks.  Well under AB5 they're not allowed to be considered independent contractors and most of them quit hauling containers out of the ports in California.  Next off is the freaking CARB regulations.  You see California requires you to have a 2012 or newer truck to even run into their state and won't allow any thing older to be allowed into it either.  So even if you're a place in Arizona that has a container in LA but your driver has a 2011 truck you're screwed as they legally can't enter California to pick-up your shipment.  See the problem they're policy helped create.

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Posted by rdamon on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 3:56 PM
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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 2:46 PM

greyhounds
 
BaltACD
The problem is there is no coordination at any port on either side of the various ponds.  Ship it and don't worry about anyone's ability to actually receive it and handle it through the receiving port and on to the ultimate consignee. Get it off the boat and don't worry about how it over uses the chassis supply, railcar supply or the ground storage area at the receiving port. No one is concerned with the next step in the supply chain. 

There seems to be a business opportunity with that.

There may be a business opportunity, however, without some level of governmental 'power' from all the governments involved in the various supply chains there would be no 'power' to enforce the coordination.

In the USA during WW I similar internal USA transportation congestion brought about the creation of the USRA.  That being said, I don't think that USRA had an responsibilities toward the ocean side of the docks.

The problems of coordination in TODAYS supply chain issues is that it is more far reaching than a single country - countries don't want to give up a single iota of sovereignty in order to facilitate coordination with other countires.

Anecdote - 

In the late 1970's railroad export coal went from near zero to several millions of tons a month.  At the time of the uptick there was no coordination between the coal being mined and the vessels arriving to move the coal.  At one point in time there were over 100 vessels at anchorage in the Chesapeake Bay waiting to take on their loads.  B&O's Curtis Bay yard was swamped with coal, but not the right coal for the vessel at dock - a real clusterf....  B&O/Chessie Management implemented an 'Embargo/Permit' system.  Vessels had to 'take a number' and supply their loading plans (transhipper, grades of coal and quantity) to the railroad; the mines were given permits to load the proper amount of coal in coordination with the vessels scheduled arrival AT THE DOCK.  Curtis Bay Yard had a standing capacity of approximately 3000 cars.  The vessels being handled had a nominal tonnage capacity equal to about 1500 cars - therefore coordination was critical in having the right coal for the right vessel at the right time - the continual juggling act.  The system worked well into the 1980's and beyond until the Bayside Coal Pier and Consol Coal Pier came on line.

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Posted by greyhounds on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 2:26 PM

BaltACD
The problem is there is no coordination at any port on either side of the various ponds.  Ship it and don't worry about anyone's ability to actually receive it and handle it through the receiving port and on to the ultimate consignee. Get it off the boat and don't worry about how it over uses the chassis supply, railcar supply or the ground storage area at the receiving port. No one is concerned with the next step in the supply chain.

There seems to be a business opportunity with that.

"By many measures, the U.S. freight rail system is the safest, most efficient and cost effective in the world." - Federal Railroad Administration, October, 2009. I'm just your average, everyday, uncivilized howling "anti-government" critic of mass government expenditures for "High Speed Rail" in the US. And I'm gosh darn proud of that.
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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 1:17 PM

The problem is there is no coordination at any port on either side of the various ponds.  Ship it and don't worry about anyone's ability to actually receive it and handle it through the receiving port and on to the ultimate consignee.

Get it off the boat and don't worry about how it over uses the chassis supply, railcar supply or the ground storage area at the receiving port.

No one is concerned with the next step in the supply chain.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by Murphy Siding on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 12:01 PM

paulcap
some relief will come with the chinese new year. they shutdown the factories for about three weeks.
 

I wonder if they'll do that, considering that production there has taken a hit with covid. Those workers and owners need to pay their bills too. Perhaps the lack of containers and ships to haul them would be a bigger wrench in the system?

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Posted by paulcap on Tuesday, October 19, 2021 11:44 AM
some relief will come with the chinese new year. they shutdown the factories for about three weeks.

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