The importance of timber to Associated British Ports‘ (ABP) operations is evident in the sheer volume of forest products that passes through its ports. The majority handle forest products cargoes, and ABP can count among them the Port of Hull, the UK’s main softwood importing port. Situated on the key routes between Britain and northern Europe, the Baltics and Scandinavia, the port handles around 1.4 million m3 of timber a year.
And because of the significance of timber cargoes, ABP continues to invest. In the past year, £600,000 was invested in storage facilities at Hull to accommodate new business from Grange Fencing, while forest products trade also benefited from three developments at Grimsby & Immingham: the £1m Immingham Forest Products Terminal; an £800,000 warehouse built under agreement with Humber Timber Terminals Ltd; and a £900,000 storage terminal for Rowlinson Timber.
In the past year there has also been investment at the Port of Newport. Westbank Timber established a new timber import facility, and International Timber began importing and processing timber at a dedicated site on the port’s North Dock. This is part of a £4.6m investment by ABP, secured by a recent 20-year agreement with International’s parent Saint-Gobain.
This investment has also cemented ABP’s relationship with Newport’s largest timber customer, Jewson.
Welsh hubs
The ports of Cardiff and Barry are vital Welsh forest product handling hubs. Last year Tilhill began exporting woodchips to the Nordic countries from the Port of Cardiff, while at the Port of Barry, pallet manufacturer Scott Timber Group expanded its operations. This involved a £1m investment in new premises and machinery, as part of a 10-year agreement. Also, ABP invested around £800,000 in a major upgrade of the port’s Transit A Shed.
Timber is also a growth product at the Port of Ipswich. Last year the port handled a record 300,000m3 and in the first quarter of 2004 volumes were up 20% on the same period last year. Volumes from the Baltics and Sweden are particularly strong, with Lacy & Middlemiss, Rix Baltic Lines and Union Transport Group all handling additional business. Anglo Norden operates its own wharf within the West Dock and is also reporting a strong increase.
Timber volumes also increased at Lowestoft last year, with a rise of 40% to 60,000m3. Timber is handled at two berths – JELD-WEN, and North Quay Cargo Terminal, a six-acre site with a large hard-standing area and 100,000ft2 of warehousing.
Logistical advantage
Forth Ports‘ Port of Tilbury has a major logistical advantage for customers whose main market is in the south, said chief executive Charles Hammond.
In his annual report, Mr Hammond said Tilbury’s location offered significant reductions in haulage and other logistics costs. “Tilbury will be a major source of growth in our ports’ business as it develops its status as one of the UK’s premier distribution hubs,” he said.
Tilbury is investing £1m in a racked warehouse after signing a 10-year contract with UPM to handle and distribute its wood products in the south-east. Timber and paper products will be shipped to Tilbury on four sailings a week and a pick-a-pack service will enable the supply of mixed loads of timber.
Last year Forth Ports saw a 5% increase in timber volumes at the Port of Rosyth, while timber traffic at the Port of Methil also rose.
Shoreham Port, which recently unveiled a new identity, handles 350,000m3 of timber a year. This year SCA has resumed its quarterly service to the south coast port and, after a trade mission to Latvia and Estonia, finance director and deputy chief executive Tim Waggott said Shoreham was aiming to increase its share of Baltic trade. The company recently expanded its wireless network to provide customers with wider remote access to stock control. “We are looking to have very good relationships with our customers and value-added services such as picking by pack,” said Mr Waggott.
Last year the Port of Liverpool, owned by Mersey Docks & Harbour Co, handled around 500,000 tonnes of timber. According to business development manager John Rogers, one of the most significant trends of the past year was the change of emphasis from breakbulk to containers as Chinese demand pushed breakbulk costs up by three or four times.
IT upgrades
At Liverpool, specialist forest products handler Stanton Grove has spent £1.6m in plant and machinery and a further £300,000 on upgrading IT and new bar code readers. CWB has established a pick and packing service with its new 40,000ft2 warehouse.
At the end of May, the Port of Sheerness handled the first vessel of the new British Columbia service operated by Gearbulk. The Petrel Arrow carried 2,500m3 of Douglas fir, hemlock and western red cedar.
“It is hoped that this business will grow in the future,” said Medway Ports marketing manager Jonathan Dix.
