Port Operation

The working expenses of a port are for the greater part of the nature of fixed charges, e.g., interest and depreciation on the capital cost of the accommodation, working of the entrances which are the same whether they lead to few or to many berths, and whether the berths are occupied or not, and those expenses have to be distributed, as a rate per ton, over the shipping using the port. Hence economy of port charges can be obtained by concentrating the trade of a country into a few ports. But this may involve a longer and more expensive carriage to point of origin or destination, and there is constant play of these contend ing forces. England is a small island with a comparatively large number of ports. On the Continent of Europe, on the other hand, the area of distribution or collection runs into many thousands of square miles served in almost all cases by waterways con centrating in the mouths of a few great rivers. The number of ports is, therefore, fewer and the tonnage concentrated in each much greater than in Great Britain allowing of lower dues per ton to obtain the necessary revenue.

In England, again, the inland transport has mainly to be made by road or rail. On the Continent of Europe the goods are carried for the most part on waterways of a width and depth to take barges sometimes nearly as large as ocean-going ships.

Comparison is frequently made of the charges in English and Continental ports to the disadvantage of the former. The explana tion can be found in the foregoing paragraphs, and may be sum marized as— (a) Substantial national expenditure not brought on to the port's accounts.

(b) Concentration of a greater tonnage over which to spread the fixed charges and (c) The larger units and therefore the lower cost of transfer from ocean to land transport. (D. R.-J.) The outline in the preceding article with respect to port operation in the United Kingdom is generally the operation found in the United States. The obligation of the steamship owner or the master, the method of cargo handling, customs regulation, provisions for customs custody and protection, are practically the same. The placing of all American port facilities under cus toms protection, however, depends upon the magnitude of the port's trade and the facilities with which the trade subject to customs supervision, operates. Ports commonly have all piers, or certain sections, supplied by supervisory customs agencies for the protection of customs and to facilitate the movement and clearing of merchandise. Likewise, bonded warehouses or bonded transit sheds have grown up, and the general system of providing customs facilities is similar to that of the United Kingdom.

Berthing Facilities.

A principal difference between English and American operation is in the type of facilities. In the quay system, generally adopted in European ports, the berthing struc ture runs parallel to the shore line and retards expansion because of the cost of land. However, this system probably provides the cheapest form of transfer from ship to shore, and is widely used. Newly created American ports have adopted, where possible in view of the cost of the necessary land and the saving in the cost of construction, the quay system. Generally, this development in America has been limited to ports built up a stream on rivers because of current conditions, lack of space and the difficulty of projecting piers at right angle to the shore line out into the stream.

The ports which avail themselves, for development purposes, of natural coast-line harbours such as Boston, New York and New port have all adopted the pier system : the building of the struc ture out into the stream perpendicular to the shore line. The advantages of pier construction are : (I) increased berthing space, (2) building of facilities without interruption to the navigation of the stream itself, (3) less land per pier is required than that which would be used for a quay capable of berthing the same number of ships. A pier, suitable to accommodate four average ocean freight steamers, can be erected using only approximately 40o ft. of shore land whereas a similar structure built on the auav system would use approximately 2,500 ft. of shore front. The pier system has led to a somewhat different method of operation both respect ing the loading and discharging of cargo as well as to the general port operation with respect to supporting warehouses and trans ferring facilities.

Mechanical Handling.

A great difference in the operation of ports in the United States and those of other countries is the absence of so-called mechanical appliances on American piers. The mechanical appliances required on the piers or quays to assist or to totally load and discharge cargoes is dependent upon the class of ships being handled. The steamships operating between American ports and other parts of the world are fully equipped to handle freight from and to the ship and the pier. No necessity has existed therefore for the installation of handling appliances on berthing structures such as are commonly seen in foreign ports.