Bad planning causes three-day delay

Bad planning and a lack of accountability have been blamed for the extensive delays at Durban's container terminal where trucks are standing idle for up to three days according to Kevin Martin, chairman of the Durban Harbour Carriers' Association.

IOL quotes Martin as saying that the Navis computer systems used by Transnet were not causing the delays but rather the lack of reliability and appalling planning were at the root of the problems.

Last week there were delays of three days at Pier Two and this week the delays are also for three days at Pier One. He says it is taking between seven and eight hours to turnaround a single truck.

Martin says that it appears that the port authority is focussing on trans-shipments and imports rather than exports and this could have serious repercussions for the South African economy in terms of jobs and revenue.

Durban Container Terminal's executive Hector Danisa blamed the Navis computer system's "unplanned downtime" for the delays. However, he conceded that the authority had identified a need for further training of equipment controllers and ship planners.

Read the full article on www.iol.co.za.