Ship chandlers worry over payments

Ship chandlers worry over payments    The International Ship Suppliers and Services Association said late payments, and some cases non-payment of invoices, has become a central issue for the ship chandler industry.
   'Ship supply, like any industry, relies on cash flow as its lifeblood, and when owners say they will pay in 30 days and then take 120 days to pay, the impact is felt by our member companies,' said Jens Olsen, newly elected president of the ISSA, in a statement.
   'We are working as an association to help our members by showing (ship) owners the impact their slow paying has on the ability of companies to continue to supply them,' he added.
   The ISSA is the international trade association for the world's ship supply sector with a membership of about 2,000 ship suppliers. The group wants to encourage ship owners and managers to 'look upon their ship suppliers as partners without whom their vessels simply could not operate.'