Federal regulators have approved a plan for East Coast seaports to operate a shared pool of truck chassis in an effort to relieve container port congestion and speed cargo turnover at busy maritime logistics sites.
The decision by the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) means the deal’s five partners are one step closer to launching their proposed South Atlantic Chassis Pool (SACP 3.0) by the target date of October, 2023. The partners include: The Ocean Carrier Equipment Management Association (OCEMA), Georgia Ports Authority (GPA), Jacksonville Port Authority (JaxPort), North Carolina State Ports Authority (NC Ports), and Consolidated Chassis Management LLC (CCM).
The public/private partnership is designed to infuse the pool with new, high-quality chassis by placing the responsibility for procuring assets with a single provider, Rockaway, New Jersey-based CCM. SACP 3.0 will be owned by a subsidiary of OCEMA and managed by CCM, but subject to forward looking operating parameters agreed with the ports, the group said.
“The SACP 3.0 represents the next logical step in the evolution of interoperable pools in the U.S. The new pool represents a leap forward in terms of supply chain efficiency and resilience,” CCM CEO Mike Wilson said in a release.
Once it goes live, the operation will be the largest fully interoperable pool in the U.S., with over 60,000 chassis available to motor carriers, shippers, and ocean carriers at multiple port and inland locations in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
“SACP 3.0 is designed to quickly respond to changes in dynamic cargo volume growth to meet customer needs with a modern and reliable chassis supply,” Brian Clark, executive director of NC Ports, said in a release.
