Table 7 Criteria Related to the Liner-Related Category
Criteria | Description |
|---|---|
Availability of dedicated/own terminal | This criterion could be important given the contemporary nature of the liner shipping industry, as many ports currently facilitate dedicated terminals for shipping lines and shipping lines also invest in/develop their own terminals at major ports. |
Personal contacts | Since the maritime industry is characterized by strong networks of relationships among business players, personal contacts tend to be important. |
Special preferences on shipping lines | This criterion refers to the special preferences on shipping lines, such as incentives, favorable berthing windows, on-arrival berths, and so on. |
Availability of feeder services | The high availability of feeder services is an essential component in hub and spoke networks. Some shipping lines can have their own feeder services serving hub ports. |
Opinion/preferences of shipper/forwarder | A shipping line’s hub port selection decision could be influenced by the opinions/preferences of that shipping line’s own customers, such as shippers, forwarders, and so on. |
Position of hub port with shipping line’s services | The position of a hub port relative to a shipping line’s own services, the proximity of the port to the next/previous hub ports with the same available service, the availability of alternative hub ports in the same region, and so on are all important. |