American Shipper

   Landstar System, the Jacksonville, Fla.-based non-asset-based highway carrier, said Thursday it has concluded its decade-long litigation with the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA).    At issue was Landstar’s compliance with federal regulations that govern the leasing relationship between motor carriers and truck owner-operators. Landstar, one of the top 10 U.S. trucking providers by revenue, […]

   Baltic Reefer Group Ltd. and the Seatrade group of companies, operators of breakbulk refrigerated vessels, said they had established a new joint venture that will operate under the name of Reefer Alliance.    “This will maintain the parties’ ability to provide competitive and commercially attractive specialized reefer services in response to the competition of the […]

   Growth in crude oil shipments by rail will continue even after pipelines are built to move the oil from the new shale-oil fields popping up around the country, railroad industry executives say.    Their comments at the RailTrends conference in New York last month, hosted by analyst Anthony Hatch and Progressive Railroading magazine, were included […]

   A survey of ship managers finds that low freight rates and a challenging market are their top concerns as they enter 2013.    The survey from the International Ship Manager’s Association, or InterManager, found half citing freight rates and the market situation as an important issue. Thirty percent cited the availability of professional and competent […]

   The logistics services company Radiant Logistics said this week it has acquired operating partner International Freight Systems (IFS), a privately-held company based in Portland, Ore.    The structure of the transaction is similar to Radiant’s previous acquisitions, with a portion of the expected purchase price payable in subsequent periods based on the future performance […]

The trucking software provider Trimble said this week it has acquired privately-held ALK Technologies, a Princeton, N.J.-based developer of routing, mapping, mileage and navigation technologies.

The project, expected to take three years, will create the largest bridge in Southern California, spanning the navigation channel that separates facilities on Terminal Island and the neighboring Port of Los Angeles.

   Hapag-Lloyd said it will offer a new weekly service to Cap Haitien, Haiti, under a connecting carrier agreement with Frontier Line.    The service will offer a weekly connection with four days transit time from the port of Cartagena, Colombia.

   Eric Martin-Neuville has been named the new chief operating officer of Geodis Wilson.    He takes over from Fernando Gea, who’s retiring.    Martin-Neuville joined the Geodis Group in 1985 and, as well as holding the position of managing director in France for many years, spent a considerable time working for the group in Asia-Pacific. […]

   Singapore-based Megaton Shipping — an international air and sea freight forwarder handling shipments throughout Asia, Europe, North America and South Africa — has expanded its handling capabilities to include all manner of cargo regularly shipping to Central Asia and Russian port cities.    The company had previously offered clients a limited list of handling […]

   A team of five salvage experts boarded the grounded drilling unit Kulluk earlier Wednesday to conduct a structural assessment to be used to finalize salvage plans.    The rig went aground on Sitkalidak Island on New Year’s Eve after towing lines broke during heavy seas. Kulluk    The salvage team was lowered to the […]

   Crowley Maritime Corp. has appointed Matt Yacavone to vice president of sales and chartering for its petroleum services, effective Jan. 7.    Based in Jacksonville, Fla., he will report to Rob Grune, senior vice president and general manager for petroleum services.    Yacavone will be responsible for the planning and direction of sales and […]

   Port Freeport in Texas has appointed Jeff Strader to chief financial officer.    Strader comes from the North Carolina State Ports Authority where he was deputy executive director for finance and administration and CFO.    He follows another former North Carolina port authority executive, Glenn Carlson, who in mid-October became Freeport’s executive director, replacing […]

The Philippine terminal operator said Wednesday it has pulled out of a terminal it operates in Tartous, Syria, including its people, due to the ongoing civil war in the Middle East nation.

Two rival groups of ocean carriers with separate weekly loops in the Asia-to-east coast of South America trade are each skipping alternate sailings and taking slots on each other’s ships to reduce their overall capacity.

   UPS has debuted a new offering for time-sensitive international heavyweight shipments.    Worldwide Express FreightSM, an extension of its Worldwide Express program, is geared toward high-value pallets weighing more than 150 pounds, shipping them on a guaranteed, day-definite basis.    The service includes overnight shipping to the United States from Asia, Europe, and Central and […]

   Freight forwarder Lynden International has opened a service center at Canada’s Edmonton International Airport to boost its offerings in the Canadian oil and gas fields and strengthen the link between its Canadian and U.S. networks.    The forwarder has offices across Canada and now has more than 50 locations in North America.    “We […]

Before joining the agency in 2010, Michael Huerta served as managing director of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City, worked in the U.S. Transportation Department, and ran the port of San Francisco.

The union and employers agreed last week to continue contract negotiations through Feb. 6, averting a strike that would have begun on Dec. 30, but there are still difficult issues for the two sides to address in the weeks ahead.

   Canada-based ENTREC, an industrial transportation company, has acquired Taylor Crane Service, an oil crane operator located in the Bakken oil formation, for $4.3 million and 1 million shares of stock.    A 31-day due diligence period will occur before the deal is closed.    “The acquisition of Taylor Crane, combined with our current operations […]