Unifeeder Takes Over Transshipments in Hamburg Port

For container transshipments between the major terminals in Hamburg Port, feeder ships can be specifically deployed starting from November 1, 2022. The goals include relieving the port infrastructure by reducing truck trips between terminals, shorter waiting times at the terminals, and a corresponding reduction in CO2 emissions.

(Hamburg) The path for this has been paved by the Danish shipping company Unifeeder as the initiator, the Hamburg software company DAKOSY, and the DIHLA DAKOSY Interest Group of Hamburg Shipping Agents (DIHLA). Together, they have created a digital process that also reflects customs treatment.

Daily, large-scale transshipment container movements by truck take place in Hamburg Port (transshipment = handling of containers between large container ships and feeder ships) that are not reloaded at the same terminal. In total, the Port of Hamburg recorded about 3.3 million TEU transshipment handling in 2021, although not every handling results in a transshipment. “Through ship-related transshipments, several thousand containers can be taken off the road each year. Every container we move via the waterway means a reduction in CO2,” emphasizes DIHLA Managing Director Alexander Geisler.

Relocation Opportunities of 50 Percent

“For these container transshipments, we see a high potential for relocation from road to waterway by utilizing our existing ship capacity. As the largest feeder carrier in Northern Europe, we have up to 85 terminal calls per week in Hamburg, providing sufficient capacity to transport additional containers within the port,” outlines Florian Pein, Area Director West and Central Europe at Unifeeder. The resulting service includes container transshipments by feeder ship between the HHLA terminals CTA, CTT, and CTB, as well as Eurogate and soon also the South-West Terminal. In the medium term, Unifeeder aims to relocate 50 percent of its transshipment movements from trucks to feeder carriers. This alternative is particularly important for Pein, especially in light of the shortage of skilled drivers in the trucking industry. “We feel the effects of the declining number of new drivers in the trucking sector for years. This continuously leads to significantly missing transshipment opportunities and long waiting times in Hamburg Port,” emphasizes Pein.

Integration into the Digital Port Community System

The prerequisites for the digital process and the customs implementation of the feeder transshipments have been jointly established by DAKOSY, DIHLA, and Unifeeder. The basis is the Port Community System operated by DAKOSY, into which a new module has been integrated. “The application is also interesting for other feeder carriers and can be used by them starting in November,” emphasizes DAKOSY project manager Franz Schwanke and adds: “The module has already proven itself in live testing. During the three-month pilot phase, Unifeeder transshipped about 50 containers per month.”

Customs Processing Integrated

The challenge of the project was to create the prerequisites for the digital customs treatment of transshipments. “Normally, an export customs procedure must be completed as soon as a container is loaded onto a feeder ship. By involving customs, we have now created an integration function in the import platform IMP and the export platform EMP, with which transshipments can be represented in a customs-compliant manner,” elaborates Schwanke.

The Transshipment Manifest as the Key to the Customs Process

The so-called transshipment manifest has been newly introduced into the process. With this, the feeder carrier signals via EDI interface or through the IMP web application that it wishes to carry out a transshipment by feeder ship. Subsequently, a change of custodian is triggered automatically, and no export process is initiated. The manifest also informs the start and destination terminal about the planned transshipment and provides status updates throughout the process. In this way, the terminals can also optimize their internal processes.

DIHLA Takes Over Pre-Financing

DIHLA has taken over the pre-financing for the realization of the necessary digital processes for feeder transshipments. The motivation is clarified by its Managing Director Alexander Geisler: “For us, the ship-related transshipment in the port is the right way. The hurdles in practice have shown that there is a need for this. Now the prerequisites for digital customs treatment have been created. This clears the way to relieve the road infrastructure in the port and to be more environmentally friendly and forward-looking, taking into account existing ship capacities and digital infrastructure.”

Photo: © Unifeeder