b'16American Journal ofTransportation ajot.comPort of Galveston gearing up(EXPANSIONcontinuedyouve got to be able to fully from page 12) integratewiththeirsystems for the industry. On the issuebecause they want to be able for new business of technology companies vs.tomanageeverythingfrom logisticscompaniesprovid- their own legacy systems ingtechnologysolutions Port of Galveston has a reputation as the Port of Everything and iswhen you look at technologym otorC arrierC hassisgearing up its West Port Complex to handle even more of everything. companies, they only provideo wnershiPi sk eythe data that can be pluggedAnotherkeyelementof By Chris Barnett, AJOT in,andoftendonthavetheGSCssuccessisthecom-visibilityonthewaterpanyownsitsownchassis SandwichedbetweentwoofAmericasWearegrowingourbusinesslikenever(terminalandoceancarrierwhichgivesitscustomers busiestandmostprominentportsNewbefore,GalvestonWharvesportdirectorandupdates), chassis pool utiliza- betterreliabilityforpickups Orleans and HoustonGalveston Wharves isCEO Rodger Rees, told the American Journal oftion (we manage this for ouranddeliveries:TheU.S. ramping up for a new generation of growth byTransportation in an exclusive interview. Fundedclients), if the shipment is at awas always a unique chassis focusing on a modern era of marine cargoes. by $42.3 million state of Texas grants and $14.1warehouse or transload facil- model. It was the only coun-What began as a lone trading post 200 yearsmillion in port funds, Rees says port staff hasityallwithinonecompany.tryintheworldofcontain-ago in 1825 on land owned and controlled byalreadypreparedengineeringdesignandpar- Usually,thisdatawouldbeerizationwheretheocean Mexico, and slowly grew intotialconstructiondrawingsforfragmentedacrossthevari- carriers provided a chassis at an active project, breakbulk,enclosurewalls,a1,340foot- ous vendors causing the BCOonepoint.Andeveryother bulk liquid and bulk fertilizerlong-berth across two open slips[Beneficial Cargo Owner] market around the world, its gateway, Galveston Wharves,and concrete paving. to have multiple APIs [appli- the motor carrier [who owns the rebranded name for PortA future phase will includecationprogramminginter- the chassis]. The motor carri-ofGalveston,isgearingupfilling in two slips behind theface] across multiple vendorserslike us, weve taken on forfurtherexpansionandenclosurewallswhichwillif the vendors in each sectionthose assets ourselves because revenuediversificationwithadd 14 acres for cargo opera- of the supply chain even offerwe can, were the ones who creativemarketingandseri- tion,hesays.PlanscallforAPI integrations or have com- canbestmanagethem.And ous spending that has alreadyaddinganother15-acresafterpatible systems. (An API is a[this]happenedbecause attracted a new generation ofdemolishing an approximatelyway for two or more computercustomers got burned during globalshippersandvessels.100-year-oldgrainelevator.programsorcomponentstothe Pandemic and other times PortleadershipisntcontentTheconstructionandexpan- communicate with each other.when theres a slight disrup-with going slow. sionoftheWestPortCargoIt is a type of software inter- tionwhereallofasudden, Complex will add about one- face,offeringaservicetoanyextendeddwellonthe w estP ortC omPlex third in size bringing the newother pieces of software.) street leads to a chassis short-Today, Galveston WharvesGalveston Wharves port directortotalcargooperatingareatoArsenault says there is aageIt only takes one or two sits on 840 acres of land front- and CEO Rodger Rees about 90 acres. lotofinvestmentbeingbad actors for that to happen, ing the deepwater Galveston Harbor. But notA major focus of the master plan is expand- looked at now inthis end- where even the ones that are for long. Guided by a 20-year strategic mastering our cargo business by increasing acreage atto-endglobalsupplychainbehavingbecomevictims plan financed by revenues, bonds, and statethe Complex, but a top priority is improvingvisibility,but(with)particu- because theyre all sharing the grantsthe50,000personTexascitydoesdecaying waterfront infrastructure after decadeslarfocusonthelastmile.same [chassis] pool GSC not contribute a dollar in taxes to its port of neglect, says Rees who is now in his sixthAnd thats something that feelstheyprovidethebetter the area is spending $50.1 million to modern- year as port chief, after serving five years aswefeelwiththelarger,alternative because it owns its ize and expand its West Port Cargo Complex.(BUSINESScontinued on page 18) moresophisticatedretailers,own chassis.Liberty Global Logistics LLCA Leading Ocean Shipping & Logistics Company516-488-8800 LibertyGL.com1979 Marcus Ave # 200, Lake Success, NY 11042'