ABSTRACT
Duringthepastfewyearstherehasbeenincreasingemphasison efficiencyatalllevelsoftheshippingindustry.Crewpersonnel havebecomeincreasinglyaccountablenotonlyfortheprofessional skillsrequiredinthesafemanagementoftheirvesselsusingthe high-techresourcesnowavailableonboard,butalsofinancial disciplinesexpressedinbudgetformulationandmonitoringona voyage-by-voyagebasis.Logistics(page186),hubandspoke operation(page90)andtheInternationalSafetyManagement(ISM) Code(page260)nowplaydecisivepartsinmodemshipoperation andmanagement.Marketingthelinecargoservicewithamarket research-ledtariffandproductdevelopmentstrategyarekeyareas ofthebusiness.Furthermore,linercargooperationsneedahighly sophisticatedandadaptableorganizationwithapracticalworldwide door-to-doorandjust-in-timelogisticscapability.Itistheeraofthe developmentofthemegatransportoperatorsofferingthetotal productdoortodoor.Theseoperators,asgloballogisticssuppliers, notonlyownlargecontainershipsandavastnumberofcontainers, butalsohavededicatedterminals,capableagencyandfeeder services(thehubandspokesystem)andefficientinlandlogistics networks.Theneedtoprovidesuchcomprehensiveandworldwide servicesisencouraginglargeoperatorstoconsolidatetheiroperations,hencetherehasbeenanincreasingtrendtowardslarge consortia.
