The Heavyweight Container Debate

At the recent Harris County International Trade & Transportation Conference by Judge Ed Emmett, Jetco CEO Brian Fielkow led a panel discussion on the topic of what manufactures need and expect from the transportation industry in order to be successful. Panelists included ExxonMobil’s Americas Logistics & Distribution Manager Perry Padden and LyondellBasell Industries Associate Director Scott Campbell. The result was a lively and honest discussion about the need to increase container weights.

When manufacturing does well, we all do well. No matter your role in the supply chain, we must understand that a vibrant manufacturing base is essential to all of our successes. Our county and surrounding counties depend on it.

Houston is in a different position than it has been in the past; job growth is not robust. We’re replacing higher paying energy jobs with lower-paying service-sector jobs. And, if it’s true that 1 job the energy industry creates 6+ more jobs downstream, then we need to be concerned. If you’re waiting for oil to increase and eventually to be better, you could be waiting a long time.

The panelists agreed: this is our new normal; it isn’t good or bad, it just is what it is. And, the question is: with this new normal, how are we going to create jobs in Harris County and surrounding counties?

While the panelists represented different business interests, all three determined that if we continue to engage in self-serving arguments without regard to what manufacturing needs, we are putting this county and our city at great risk.

One current issue is the proposed changes to legal container weights. There was a consensus amongst the panelists: it is time to have an open and honest conversation about how current laws negatively impact manufacturers. The county has been waiting for years for the resin boom, and it’s here. Yet, some shippers are now considering sending everything out of our market by rail because Texas is not willing to see the big picture.

“This impacts all of us: warehousing, packers, stevedores, truckers,” said Fielkow. “It is not an ‘us versus them.’ We are all in this together.”

According to panelists, if we want to grow jobs in Harris and surrounding counties, now is the time to have our voices on the topic of heavy containers. “It can be done safely,” Fielkow concluded, “and it needs to be done in the 2017 legislative session.”

Jetco advises its customers to watch carefully the legislation which will be introduced to allow heavy weight containers in our region. If you’re interested in learning more, contact us.