Port and Cargo Technical Terms

Technical Terms

• Anchorage is a harbor area with sufficient water depth for vessels to anchor.
• Arrastre refers to a person/entity that handles portside cargo operations, including receiving, handling, custody, security, and delivery within the authorized area.
• Ballast is heavy material used to provide weight and stability to structures or vehicles like ships or aircraft.
• Beam of Vessel refers to the width of a vessel at its widest point, or the width at the midpoint of its length.
• Berth signifies a specific length of quay wall where a vessel can tie up.
• Berthing/Docking means maneuvering a vessel from an anchorage or pilot station to a berth, and stationing it alongside a pier, quay, or wharf.
• Breakwaters are physical structures protecting port infrastructure from the sea.
• Bulk Cargo refers to unpacked or undivided cargo handled in mass, which may be solid, pulverized, liquid, semiliquid, or gas.
• Buoy in navigation is a floating object anchored to mark a channel, warn of hazards, or indicate a safe passage.
• Break Bulk Cargo refers to cargo that is packed and handled in mass.
• Cargo Throughput is the total cargo volume discharged and loaded at a port, including breakbulk, liquid bulk, dry bulk, containerized, transit, and transshipment cargo.
• Carrier is a company or individual that transports cargo from one location to another.
• Examples include MAERSK LINE, HANJIN SHIPPING, WANHAI LINES, K LINE, and NYK LINE

Coastwise/Domestic Trade & Containers

• Coastwise/Domestic Trade refers to trade carried on between ports of the same country.
• Container refers to a large metal box for stuffing and handling goods as a unit, with standard sizes of 20 ft. x 8 ft., 40 ft. x 8 ft., and 45 ft. x 8 ft.

Types of Containers

• Dry Containers
• Reefer Containers
• Flat Rack Containers
• Open Top Containers
• Tank Containers
• Platform Containers
• ISO Tank Containers
• High Cube Containers
• Open-Side Containers
• Ventilated Containers

Vessel Chartering

• Bareboat Charter includes the charterer is responsible for the vessel's operations, navigation, crewing, is known as the disponent owner, and can be cost-effective because the charterer doesn't have to pay for a crew.
• Time Charter includes the charterer pays a daily fee but the shipowner manages the vessel, and the charterer may subcharter the vessel.
• Voyage Charter includes the charterer pays a daily fee but the shipowner manages the vessel, and has little control over the route.
• Dock Container Freight Station (CFS) is a warehouse or transit shed adjacent to the container yard, used to stuff and strip containers.
• Off-Dock Container Freight Station (CFS) is a facility near the serving port to help decongest the port.

More Technical Terms

• Container Terminal is a port facility for berthing containerships and harbor transport of containers.
• Dock Container Yard (CY) is a designated area in a container terminal where containers and chassis are received, stacked, and dispatched.
• Off-Dock Container Yard (CY) is a container yard located outside port areas, though not necessarily in inland areas
• Containerized Cargo means cargo packed in containers for easy handling and transport.
• Controlling Depth is the least water depth in navigable areas, limiting vessel draft.
• Deadweight Tonnage (DWT) is the total carrying capacity of a ship in long tons (2,240 lbs.) that includes cargo, fuel, water, stores, baggage, passengers, and crew but exclude water in boilers.
• Depth is the vertical distance measured at the vessel's midpoint from the top of the keel or ceiling to the top of the upper deck.
• Disembarkation is the act of landing or going ashore from a ship.
• Dockage Report specifies vessel information, voyage details, flag registry, operator/owner, vessel particulars, port calls, and vessel movement.
• Down/Idle Time is the total time work on the vessel stops.
• Draft of Vessel is the depth of the ship below the waterline to its lowest point.
• Dues include harbor fees, tonnage, wharfage, and other fees imposed by existing laws.
• Dwell Time is the hours a vessel spends from waiting to berth until the completion of the un-berthing process.
• Embarkation is the act of boarding a vessel or ship.
• Foreign Trade is trade between a Philippine port and a foreign port.
• Freight is the price paid to a ship owner for transport or the goods being transported.
• Freight Forwarding acts as an intermediary between shipper and transportation services like ocean, trucking, air, or railway.

Role of Freight Forwarder & More Definitions

• Documentation, warehousing, tracking, packaging, bookings, pricing, consolidation, and insurance are all roles of freight forwarders in shipping.
• Forty-foot Equivalent Unit (FEU) is a unit equivalent to a 40-foot container's length and is used to express the capacity of container ships.
• Full Container Load (FCL) is cargo belonging to one consignee and covered by one bill of lading for door-to-door delivery.
• Gang is a group of cargo workers employed in a hatch.
• Gross Ganghours - the total number of hours gangs rendered in discharging and loading cargo, including the gangs idle time.
• Net Gang-Hours reflects the total hours spent by gangs discharging and loading cargo, excluding idle time.
• Idle Gang-Hours show the difference between the gross gang hours and net gang-hours.
• Net Tonnage indicates the interior volume of cargo space.
• Gross Tonnage indicates to the total interior volume.
• Lightweight Tonnage indicates to a ship's weight without cargo, fuel, or passengers.
• Deadweight Tonnage indicates to the total weight a ship can carry, including cargo, fuel, and passengers.
• Infrastructure includes fixed harbor parts like land, roads, quay walls, and breakwaters.
• Harbor is a protected water body used by vessels for safety.
• Hatch is a vessel opening for lowering cargo.
• Less Container Load (LCL) has cargoes belonging to multiple consignees.
• Loading transfers cargo into a ship.
• LO-LO (Lift-On Lift-Off) uses cranes to load/unload vessels.

More Definitions

• Manifest lists commodity items/passengers carried by the vessel and is needed for clearance/entrance of the vessel.
• Metric Ton equals 2,204.6 lbs or 1,000 kilograms.
• Marshalling Yard stacks containers based on sequence or transfer to CY-CFS, containers are arranged prior to loading.
• Mooring secures to a dock/buoy or anchoring with two anchors.
• Packaging is the form of shipping cargoes.
• Pallet is a portable platform (6 ft. x 4 ft.) for unit load transport via forklift trucks.
• Pier extends into the sea.
• Port is a sheltered area for ships to anchor, repair, load, or discharge cargo.
• Terminal Port is a front-line port facility with government or private owners.
• Base Port is a hub of operations and the busiest terminal in a PMO.
• Other Terminal Port (OTP) is a port under PPA with fewer activities than a baseport.
• Other Government Port (OGP) is a public port owned/maintained by other government entities .
• Private Port is owned/maintained by a private entity and may be commercial/noncommercial.
• Port Dues are charged against vessels in foreign trade that enter any port based on gross registered tonnage (GRT).
• Port of Origin is the last port of call.
• Shipcalls is the number of vessels arriving at a port.
• Port Management Office (PMO) oversees base ports.
• Roll On/Roll Off (RO-RO) Vessels is designed for carrying wheeled cargo via ramps.
• Stevedore is a person providing cargo handling service on board a vessel.
• Stevedoring Services is works performed on board vessel, loading and unloading cargo, stowing.
• Stripping is unloading goods from a container.
• Packing is loading goods into a container.
• Lashing secures cargo for transportation, utilizing ropes, cables, chains, and other materials.
• Terminal Management Office (TMO) oversees terminal operations for frontline services.
• Transit Cargo is loaded and unloaded via another port.
• Time on Berth is the hours a vessel spends completing the berthing process to completion of the un-berthing process on final departure.
• Transit Shed is a covered pier/wharf building used for storage of cargo.

TEU, Vessels, the Philippine Port System Authority and more

• Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit (TEU) measures a 20-foot container and is often used to express the capacity of ships.
• Vessel is a ship, boat, or artificial means of water transport.
• Waiting Time is the time a vessel spends from reporting to port to completing the berthing process.
• Wharf is a continuous structure for vessels to receive or discharge cargo, embark/disembark passengers, or lie at rest.
• Philippine Ports Authority established in 1974 is mandated to manage and develop a rationalized national port system and is a GOCC attached to the DOTr.
• Civil Aeronautic Authority of the Philippines established in 2008 is mandated to Establish and prescribe rules and regulations for the inspection and registration of all aircraft. They are a a GOCC attached agency of Department of Transport (DOTr).
• Government owned and Operated Ports include the Port of Limay in Bataan

Port Service Providers

• The Ports of Manila, MICP, and Batangas are operated by ATI and ICTSI

• The Port of Davao Operated by DICT

• Some of the Port service providers are:

  • Port Operators DICT
  • INTERNATIONAL CONTAINER TERMINAL SERVICES INC.
  • ASIAN TERMINAL INC
  • Stevedoring Services (Cargo Handling)
  • INTERNATIONAL CONTAINER TERMINAL SERVICES INC.
  • ASSOCIATED WORKERS UNION
  • WESTERN MINDANAO STEVEDORING CORPORATION
  • Bunkering Services - Petrol, Shell
  • Vessel Repair - HARBOR STAR SHIPPING SERVICES INC.
  • VERTEX MARITIME INTERNATIONAL TRADING INC.
  • SUSANOWA SHIP MANAGEMENT
  • Trucking Services R.B GONZA
  • Shipping Lines - EVERGREEN, MAERSK, COSCO SHIPPING
  • Brokerage Services - R.B GONZA

17 Collection Districts

• Port of San Fernando
  • SUB PORT OF BAGUIO PEZA
  • SUB PORT OF SALOMAGUE
  • SUB PORT OF SUAL
• Port of Manila
  • SUB PORT OF HARBOR CENTER
  • SUB PORT OF MASINLOC
  • CUSTOMS POSTAL OFFICE
  • SUB PORT OF PEZA CAVITE
  • SUB PORT OF PEZA LAGUNA
  • SUB PORT OF NORTH HARBOR
• Port of Manila International Container Terminal (MICP)
• Port of Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA)
  • MANILA DOMESTIC AIRPORT
  • CENTRAL MAIL EXCHANGE CENTER (CMEC)
• Port of Batangas
  • SUB PORT OF PUERTO PRINCESA
  • SUB PORT OF SIAIN
• Port of Legaspi
  • SUB PORT OF TABACO
  • SUB PORT OF JOSE PANGANIBAN
• Port of Iloilo
  • SUB PORT OF PALUPANDAN
  • SUB PORT OF KALIBO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
• Port of Cebu
  • SUB PORT OF MACTAN -UB PORT OF DUMAGUETE
• Port of Tacloban
  • SUB PORT OF ISABEL
  • SUB PORT OF CATBALOGAN
• Port of Surigao - SUB PORT OF SAN JOSE - SUB PORT OF BISLIG - SUB PORT OF NASIPIT
• Port of Cagayan De Oro
  • SUB PORT OF OZAMIS
  • SUB PORT OF ILIGAN
  • SUB PORT OF MINDANAO CONTAINER TERMINAL
• Port of Zamboanga
  • SUB PORT OF ZAMBOANGA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
  • SUB PORT OF JOLO
  • SUB PORT OF TAWI TAWI
  • SUB PORT OF BAZILAN
• Port of Davao
  • SUB PORT OF DADIANGAS
  • SUB PORT OF MATI
  • SUB PORT OF PARANG
• Port of Subic
• Port of Clark International Airport
• Port of Aparri
  • SUB PORT OF IRINE
  • SUB PORT OF CURRIMAO
  • SUB PORT OF LAOG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
• Port of Limay
  • SUB PORT OF CLAVERIA
  • SUB PORT OF MARIVELES

Types of Cargo Services

• Sea Cargo Services
  • Pros - Lower Cost, Larger Cargo Space, Environmentally Friendly
  • Cons - Longer Transit Times, Limited Accessibility, Risk of Damage
• Air Cargo Services
  • Pros - Fast Delivery Times, Global Accessibility, Reduced Risk of Damage
  • Cons - Higher Cost, Limited Cargo Space, Strict Weight and Size Restrictions
• Road Cargo Services
  • Pros - Flexibility, Speed Cost-Effective
  • Cons - Limited Cargo Space, Weather-Dependent, Congestion
• Rail Cargo Services
  • Pros - High Capacity, Energy-Efficient, Lower Costs
  • Cons - Limited Accessibility, Longer Transit Times, Dependence on Infrastructure
• Intermodal Cargo Services
  • Pros - Flexibility, Cost - Effective, Reduced Carbon Emission
  • Cons - Complex Logistics, Longer Transit TIme, Dependence on Infrastructure

Seaport Machines & Equipments

• Container Crane - is a dockside gantry crane found at container terminals
• Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVS) use transported cargo using guidance Technology
• Terminal tractor- used to move containers on semi-trailers
• Chassis Rotators - Heavy duty forklift trucks with a "flipper" attachment
• Forklift - powered industrial trucks that use two folks 1 to 40 tons
• Pallet jacks - lift and move pallets
• Harbor Crane - Run on either wheels or tracks and Use Hoist ropes
• Rubber-Tired Gantry (RTG)Cranes - Use a Crossbeams supported on vertical leg
• Straddle Carrier - move a container by Straddling it
• Reach Stacker - Overhead attachment on a telescopic Boom Top Handlers use an overhead attachment
• Container XRAY - Customs search the container with xrays

Types of Sea Cargo

• Containerized Cargo - transporting goods and standards ship containers
• Dry Bulk Cargo - large quantities of solid material that are unpackaged in bulk
• Liquid bulk Cargo - transporting liquids in closed tanks without packaging
• Break bulk Cargo - Ships in pack individual unit, rather in than containers
• Project Cargo - Transportation of large and heavy and valuable equipment for construction mining
• Commonly used in shipping are general containers, and reefer containers

Classification Hazard

• Class 1 - Explosives
• Class 2 - Gases
• Class 3- In Flammable Liquids
• Class 4- In Flammable Solids
• Class 5- Oxidizing Agents, Organic Peroxides
• Class 6 Poisonous (Toxic) and infectious substances radioactive substances
• Class 7 radioactive substances
• Class 8 - Corrosives
• Class 9 - Miscellaneous Dangerous Substances

Airport Machines and Equipment

• International Airports handle foreign arrivals and need border control facilities.
• Domestic Airports include PRINCIPAL CLASS I for jet aircraft with 100+ passengers.
  • PRINCIAPL CLASS II accommodates smaller aircraft carrying 19+ passengers.
  • COMMUNITY AIRPORT serves general aviation traffic.
• Examples of the Airport are: -Francisco Bangoy International Aiport (Davao) -Cebu Mactan International Airport (Cebu) -Bohol - Panglao International Airport -Puerto princessa International Airport -Bicol International Airport -Subic international Airport

Procedures for passenger Baggage

• INternational Passenger Departure
  • Counter check-in
  • Baggage Drop
  • Immigration
  • Security check
• Inetrnational passenger Arrival
  • Immigration clearing
  • Baggage Pick up -Customs clearing