Solutions suffering from ports’ power play
Port owners and shipping companies are flexing their muscles when it comes to supply chain negotiations, according to an independent market survey of nearly 200 industry port owners, consultants and contractors.
The survey, which was conducted by Trelleborg Marine Systems in association with Port Strategy, revealed that a third of all respondents believe that ports hold the most power in project negotiations. This figure rose to 60% among contractors.
Richard Hepworth, managing director of Trelleborg Marine Systems, said: “Clearly every party has its own paymaster and point of view on the procurement process, but we find that where negotiations proceed on a level playing field a more cost effective and complete solution is achieved.
“There is a widely held argument that client-supplier negotiations have become more adversarial during the economic downturn and this is counter-productive for all parties. It results in low cost, inferior solutions which, in the port industry, are the cause of excessive downtime, maintenance and ultimately the loss of business or reputation.
“One solution is to tackle the industry standards to ensure that suppliers raise the bar and clients, in turn, demand the highest quality mission critical equipment, such as fenders, berthing and mooring equipment.”
Eric Van den Eede, president of PIANC, added: “It’s important that we draw on the collective expertise of the market, listen to their feedback and bring forward new guidelines which will raise standards across the supply chain. It’s the standards that should dictate price, not the other way around.”
However, it should also be noted that more than half (55%) of operators and a third (34%) of consultants believe shipping companies exert a similar influence over the client-supplier relationship.
Trelleborg’s Barometer Report, which details a wide range of findings from the survey, is available now as a free download from: www.takesthepressureoff.com
