Pacific Maritime Association

S TATIS TI CAL ��� I N F ORMATI ON Port Hours, Wages and Tonnage Data Calculation of Total Tonnage and ���Weighted Tonnage��� Cargo moving through West Coast ports is manifested in a variety of ways, but when reported it is ultimately distilled into revenue tons or revenue units (TEUs). General Cargo is reported by weight or measure; Lumber & Logs, by 1,000 board feet to the ton; Automobiles (and light trucks) by measure; Bulk Cargo by weight; and Containerized Cargo, as number of boxes that are converted into Revenue Units, or TEUs. A Revenue Unit, by definition, is equivalent to 17 revenue tons. From this collection of data, PMA constructs a variety of tonnage statistics that are used for many different purposes. Some of those uses require adjusting, or ���weighting,��� one or more of the cargo sector tonnage values to develop useful indices for comparisons over time or among ports or port groups. One such tonnage ���weighting��� is used in this section. Total Tonnage The most commonly used tonnage statistic is Total Tonnage. This measure is constructed by multiplying the number of container TEUs by 17 revenue tons, adding General Cargo revenue tons, Lumber & Logs revenue tons, Autos revenue tons and Bulk tons. The ���Total Tonnage��� data for each port table shown in this section is calculated by this method. ���Weighted��� Tonnage For the purpose of comparing the volume of tonnage handled in a port or group of ports to the corresponding number of hours paid, a ���weighted tonnage��� statistic is used. Only two of the cargo sectors are altered to ���weight��� the total tonnage: Autos and Bulk. Coast Total Tons per Hour Paid Applying a ���weighting��� factor to bulk tonnage has been a common approach to measuring productivity for decades. Bulk tonnage is currently weighted at 50 to 1. The reason for greatly reducing the amount of the Bulk tonnage used in studies about productivity is that Bulk Cargo, because of the methods of loading and discharging it, requires far fewer payroll hours per ton than the other sectors of cargo. Coast Total Tons ���Weighted��� Tons per Hour Paid Automobiles are reported by measure: each 40 cubic feet of volume is reported as one ton. For example, a popular mid-sized sedan measures 460 cubic feet and weighs 3,330 pounds. This vehicle is reported as 11.5 revenue tons even though it weighs just over 1.6 tons. New imported automobiles arrive on specialized auto carriers and are driven off the vessel and parked. This operation generally takes much less time than handling general cargo or lumber and logs. To offset this difference in labor requirements, auto tonnage is weighted at 6 to 1. ���92 ���94 ���98 ���96 ���00 ���02 ���04 ���06 ���10 ���08 ���12 Total Hours have been annualized for 1992, 1998, 2004 and 2009, since these years have 53 payroll weeks, for the calculations of Coast Total Tons per Hour Paid and Coast Total Tons "Weighted" Tons per Hour Paid. Coast Total Tons per Hour Paid Total ���Weighted��� Tonnage Thus, the ���weighted��� tonnage statistic that is used in the graphs on this page and in calculating the ���Weighted Tons��� per Hour data in the following tables is the sum of container TEUs x 17, General Cargo tonnage, Lumber & Logs tonnage, 1/6 of Automobiles & Trucks tonnage, and 1/50 of Bulk Cargo tonnage. Coast Total Hours Paid Coast Total Tonnage 1992-2012 40 35 300 25 250 20 200 15 150 10 100 5 1992-2012 300 350 30 Coast Total ���Weighted��� Tons 1992-2012 400 50 250 Noncontainerized Cargo Containerized Cargo 200 150 100 Coast Total Tons ���Weighted��� Tons per Hour Paid 50 0 0 0 '92 '97 '02 '07 '12 '92 '97 '02 '07 '12 '92 '97 '02 '07 '12 ���Weighted��� Tons = Containerized + (Auto & Trucks)/6 + Lumber & Logs + General Cargo + Bulk/50 PACIFIC MARITIME ASSOCIATION 71

• Cover