Write 6 pages with APA style on The Role of Seaport Terminals in Maritime Transportation. Before going any further, it is imperative in this paper to define first the important words that we will be dealing with as we go on with the discussion. Before going any further, it is imperative in this paper to define first the important words that we will be dealing with as we go on with the discussion.
Maritime transportation involves seaborne transportation such as boats and intermodal transportation. Maritime transportation cannot function without seaport terminals. It is here where sea vehicles bring and unload their cargo and also where trucks, trains, and other land vehicles get the cargo unloaded from ships and bring them to different destinations.
A port is a part of a transportation network. It is located on the shorelines of a city or country and it is here where terminal services can be acquired and provided by sea ships, trains, and trucking firms. The services include the transport of cargo and passengers. .
Barges are used for inland transport of goods while feeder vessels are used instead of large vessels in accessing to hub ports. The hubs are those which receive a high volume of transported goods. (Meisel, 2009, p. 8) TEU (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) is the unit of measurement for measuring the weight of container cargo.
Containers have a measurement of twenty square feet. (Stevens, 1999, Containerization has revolutionized the handling of cargoes in port terminals. Before the adaption of containers, cargoes were just placed in boxes or crates. This was very ineffective in the handling of voluminous cargoes. But now, containers have simplified packaging and shipment of cargoes.
Containerization provides easy handling and processing of goods. Port authorities have recognized the importance of containers and so they provide a big space for these. Cranes, super-structures and other pieces of equipment used in loading and unloading of containers have to be provided for this purpose.
Seaborne trade has impacted on the overall world trade that involves the transport of goods which in 2007 alone amounted to 8.02 billion tons of different goods. Every year this big volume increases to several percentages. Most of the bulk of this cargo is in the containerized ship. (UNCTAD, 2005, p. 8)Emerging economies, such as those in Asia, have contributed to the increase of shipment of cargoes in ports.
These emerging economies depend much on commodities shipment, fuel, and the employment generated out of it. Seaborne trade accounts for a big percentage of the economy generated by these emerging economies in Asia and other Third World countries.