* Peter Keller, President of NYK Line (North America)
* Giacomo Landi, Head of Global Ports and Logistics for DnB NOR Bank
* Ghislain Lorthiois, Deputy General Manager, Terminal Link, CMA CGM Group
* Jim McKenna, President & CEO, Pacific Maritime Association
* Rodolfo Sabonge, Director, Corporate Planning and Marketing, Panama Canal Authority
* Richard A Schart, Vice President & Director of Transportation for JC Penney
* Douglas A Tilden, President & CEO of MTC Holdings
Returning to Panama at what is a critical time in the country’s maritime development, the seventh TOC Americas conference will focus both on the challenges of planning for the future and the reality of doing business today – in Panama and across the Americas as a whole.
“I believe the key issue for the Panama/Americas container market is to prepare ourselves for the Panama Canal expansion, making sure we are developing the port infrastructure needed to support it,” says Mr Kouruklis of Panama Ports Company. “There is no better way to do this than to come to TOC Americas in Panama to experience first hand these developments.”
The impact of the Panama Canal expansion will indeed form a central theme in the agenda for 2007, along with other key issues facing the Panamanian and Americas container market. According to Port & Maritime Consultant Mr Sgut, these issues are numerous and include: congestion; development of greenfield projects in Latin America; increase in the size of vessels; the railway interface; security; Customs facilitation, particularly in Latin America; the environment; and labour.
“As the main event for the container terminal market in the Americas, bringing together professionals from the logistics and distribution, liner, port equipment, construction, IT and finance sectors, TOC Americas is the ideal forum for the discussion of such issues,” Mr Sgut says.
Infrastructure upgrades, the funding and creation of new vessel, terminal and inland capacity, and the effective management of the supply chain have become major challenges for all involved in the movement of containerised goods to and from the Americas. This is further compounded by new environmental and security imperatives, which add extra cost, and new operational and process dimensions into the equation.
At the same time as paving the way for future expansion, however, all parties involved in the container transport chain need to find practical ways of keeping today’s goods moving. TOC Americas 2007 will address ways of beating the existing inefficiencies that fracture the transport chain, disrupt productivity and prevent full use of existing capacity.
In addition to general conference sessions on the first two days, the final morning of TOC Americas will once again feature a series of focused workgroups on key technical and operational issues, addressing supply chain integration, visibility and security, meeting green targets, and the development of common metrics to track and benchmark port performance.
TOC Americas 2007 also features an extensive tour programme, including a Panama Canal visit on Monday 5 November, hosted by the Panama Canal Authority; a combined terminal/rail tour on Thursday 8 November, including visits to both Panama Port Company's Balboa terminal and the Manzanillo International Terminal at Colon; and a cross-country rail trip hosted by the Panama Canal Railway Company.
Summary of information for inclusion in diary / event listings:
6-8 November 2007
TOC Americas 2007 Conference and Exhibition
The Shipping, Ports and Terminals Event for the Americas
El Panama Hotel, Panama City, Panama
http://www.tocevents-americas.com
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