This edition of Waterline contains the March quarter 1998 container stevedoring productivity indicators, which coincide with the period immediately prior to the recent waterfront dispute involving Patrick stevedoring operations.

In Waterline 16, the BTE commented on the Australian container transport system's ability to adapt to a significant reduction in capacity caused by the industrial dispute between Patrick and the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA).

Articles in the issue: Stevedoring productivity, waterfront reliability, Port Interface cost index, Port performance and crew to berth ratios.

Articles in the issue: Stevedoring productivity, waterfront reliability, costal shipping permits and crew to berth ratios.

Articles in the issue: Stevedoring productivity, waterfront reliability, Port Interface cost index, Port performance-non financial and crew to berth ratios.

Articles in the issue: Stevedoring productivity, Costal shipping permits, Coastal freight in Australia, crew to berth ratios and waterfront reliability.

Overall, while the national crane rate productivity in the December quarter 1999, as measured by the five-port average, exceeded the rate for the December quarter 1998, it was lower than rates achieved for the first three quarters of 1999.

The BTE has developed a general framework for undertaking port impact studies in Australia , with a case study of the Port of Fremantle measuring the impact of port-related activities on the Western Australian economy in 1998–99.

Compared with 1998–99, the 1999–2000 five port total container traffic, measured in teus, increased by 14 per cent to 3.14 million teus.

The five-port average crane rate was 24.9 containers per hour in the September quarter 2000. This is the highest crane productivity recorded since the series commenced.