b'18American Journal ofTransportation ajot.com(FUNDAMENTALcontinued fromfor ocean transportation and storage. motor carriers use specific intermodalVan Noel, EVP and Chief Operating page 16) Therequirementisintendedtochassis providers to move containers. Officer at TRAC Intermodal.the appointments they have selected.ensurethatthepartyreceivingtheTheAmericanTruckingAsso- While he recognizes that conges-Thiscanpreventotherfirmsfrominvoicehasfirst-handknowledgeofciations(ATA)IntermodalMotortionisaconcernforanyoneinthe beingabletousetheappointmentthe terms of the contract and is in theCarriersConference(IMCC)filedainternational intermodal supply chain, times. bestpositiontounderstandanddis- complaint in 2020 against the Oceanhesaid,TRACworkstoaddress The second factor that can impactputechargesifnecessary.TheruleCarrierEquipmentManagementthis issue by providing a high-quality drayageoperationalprotectsthirdparties,Association (OCEMA), Consolidatedchassis to allow our equipment to turn inefficiency is the timesuch as motor carriers,Chassis Management, and the worldsas quickly as possible in and out of spent waiting for accesswho do not have a con- largestoceancarriersallegingtheyintermodal gateways.tocontainers.Becausetractualrelationshipviolated the Shipping Act by requir-drayage drivers are sub- with the ocean carrier,ingcarrierstousespecificdefaultP Ort service PrOviders helPject to the same Hoursfromunfairbillingchassis providers and denying motorcOmPAnies nAvigAte theof Service (HOS) rulespractices. carriers the right to select the chassisinternAtiOnAl suPPly chAinas all truckers, a driverThis is a great stepprovider for merchant haulage move- Withallthemanydynamics canrunoutofhoursforward for the indus- ments. This was viewed as a victoryinvolvedineveryglobalshipment, while waiting. try, said Schrap. Wefor trucking companies. from securing appointments to being The Federal Motorsupportstandardizedcompensated,andhavingaccessto Carrier Safety Admin- andreasonablebillings AFety , t echnOlOgyA dvAnces in chassiswhenandwheretheyare istration(FMCSA)practices,whichwillc hAssism AnAgement needed, the drayage industry can be adjustedtheHOSMatt Schrap, CEO, of theultimatelyimproveFor companies like TRAC Inter- complicated.rules in ways that ben- Harbor Trucking Association overall efficiency sincemodal, the focus is on making sure allThe supply chain is fragile, so any efit some drayage drivers. They canfirms will not be constantly strugglingnewandrefurbisheddisruptioncanhave now extend their radius of operationto interpret the validity of charges. chassisarenotonlyfar-reachingconse-anextra50milesundertheshort- availablebutalsoquences, said Schrap. haul exemption. On-duty hours haveb eingA ble tOc hOOsec hAssis have the most currentThisbusinessisnot increased from 12 to 14, but drivingP rOvidersh elPsd rAyAgeF irms advancesandsafetyfor the faint of heart.time is still limited to 11 hours. m AnAgeO PerAtiOns attributes.Thecom- That is why some In the U.S., many container chas- panyhasinvestedcompaniesturnto e nsuringA ccurAcy inb illing sisaremanagedbycompanieslikemorethan$1Btoportservicepro-P rActices Andc OmPensAtiOn DirectChassisLinkInc.,(DCLI),expand and modern- viderslikeNFIto c Ani mPActe FFiciency Flexi-Van Leasing, and TRAC Inter- ize its fleet. managesomeorall Thenextchallengetoefficiencymodal. A past practice of some oceanAdditionally,aspectsofthepro-stems from the need to ensure the accu- carriers being able to choose specificwedeploythelatestcess.BrianWebb, rate application of detention and demur- chassiswaschallengingbecauseittechnologythatnotPresidentofPort ragebilling.InFebruary2024,thelimitedtheabilityofdrayagefirmsonlyprovidestheVan Noel, EVP and COO Services at NFI said, FederalMaritimeCommission(FMC)to select chassis providers, making itlocation of where the at TRAC Intermodal Ourdiverseservice issued a new final rule stating that deten- more difficult to manage operations. chassis are located but more impor- offerings allow us to navigate periods tionanddemurrageinvoicesmustbeInFebruary2024,theFMCtantly,providekeytelematicsthatofunpredictability,suchasvolume directed to the party that has a contrac- upheld a 2023 ruling that ocean car- allowustoenhanceourutilization(FUNDAMENTALcontinued tual relationship with the billing partyrierscouldnotlawfullyrequirethatandourcustomerexperience,saidpage 20)'