American Shipper

   Rockford Solar Partners, a renewable energy development joint venture between Elgin, Ill.-based Wanxiang America and New Generation Power in Chicago, received both U.S. Energy Department and Federal Aviation Administration environmental approval to start building the country’s largest commercial airport-based solar farm to be located at the Chicago Rockford International Airport.    Rockford airport was […]

     The U.S. Transportation Department has awarded a $54.6 million loan to Kansas City Southern Railway Co. to buy 30 new General Electric ES44AC locomotives.    These diesel-electric locomotives, built in Erie, Pa., will help KCS meet increasing economic demand, and are more energy-efficient and produce significantly less carbon emissions than the locomotives they […]

     Teletrac, a provider of fleet management services for the trucking sector, has integrated its Fleet Director GPS and vehicle tracking system TruckMate with an enterprise transportation service from TMW Systems.    The interface will provide customers using both systems with a seamless integration for two-way communications between dispatchers and drivers, along with real-time […]

     Check Freight Broker (CFB), a free freight matching site, has integrated its funding technology platform, Freight Payable Systems, to allow users to request fuel advances and prompt freight bill payment direct from the site.    With the integration of Freight Payable Systems, CFB has become one of the few completely free load boards, […]

   A third port in southern Georgia could help diversify the state’s marine business by concentrating on bulk cargo such as grains, sands, aggregates and wood pellets, according to a Feb. 16 press release by the Camden County Joint Development Authority, which is promoting the concept.    David Keating, the JDA’s executive director, recently briefed […]

     Echo Global Logistics said it had a profit of $3.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2011, a 33.4 percent increase over the $2.6 million earned in the same 2010 period.    Revenue in the quarter was $162.9 million, 43.1 percent higher than in the same 2010 period.    The Chicago-based company said that for […]

   The international transport and logistics company cargo-partner has appointed Rakesh Suri as its new managing director India.    Suri was most recently chief operating officer at Hellmann Worldwide Logistics India, and prior to that, director and COO of HTL Logistics India.    Germany-based cargo-partner specializes in forwarding (including transportation and warehousing) for complex cargo […]

The container line APL lost $446 million from continuing operations in 2011, nearly wiping out the $492 million in operating profits the line made in 2010. APL’s losses were reported Wednesday by Singapore-based parent company NOL.

     Cheetah Software Services, a provider of information technology, has delivered the next version of its mobile application to Ward Transport and Logistics, a regional trucking company.    Running on the Android platform, Cheetah Mobile connects field workers with dispatch, customer service, management, and customers through two-way messaging, dynamic ETA updates, and POD verification.   […]

     The number of Industry Integration Centers for Excellence and Expertise within U.S. Customs devoted to centralizing the import process for trusted shippers could double to four this fiscal year, Acting Deputy Commissioner Thomas Winkowski recently said.    Customs and Border Protection last fall established two Centers of Excellence and Expertise (CEE) – one in […]

     The advisory and research company Drewry said shippers should expect reliability levels to fall as rates rise, if recent research is an indicator.    “When rates have been good for carriers, reliability has been below par, while the two best on-time results have occurred in periods when prices have been on the floor,” […]

The announcement followed the completion over the President’s Day weekend of work by the United States and South Korea to review each other’s laws and regulations related to the implementation of the agreement.

The containership chartering firm Danaos recorded profits in the fourth quarter and full-year 2011, compared to losses a year earlier, but the company’s chief executive officer said the charter market for containerships is in “breakeven mode.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection published a notice of proposed rulemaking that would make substantial changes to the way imported merchandise is transported inland under a bond. 

     U.S. aircraft manufacturer Boeing will participate in the U.S. Export-Import Bank’s Supply-Chain Finance Guarantee program, which provides competitively priced working capital financing to suppliers of goods or services to U.S. exporters.    Ex-Im Bank approved the Boeing supplier program in September 2011 with an initial capacity of $740 million. The bank can guarantee […]

     The U.S. Export-Import Bank will provide small exporters with revolving credit through a new product called Global Credit Express (GCE).    “This new product will provide additional liquidity for eligible American exporters and access to financing at a reasonable cost,” said Bank Chairman Fred P. Hochberg, in a statement.    Through GCE, small business […]

Trenck    A leading shipping analyst said last week he expects the transpacific trade to perform better in 2012 than it did in 2011.    “I feel better about the U.S. short-term than many other areas of the globe,” Charles de Trenck, founder of Hong Kong-based Transport Trackers, wrote in his 2012 forecast. “The political […]

     The U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security Undersecretary Eric L. Hirschhorn on March 1 will meet with leading Silicon Valley companies to update them on the reform of the country’s export control regulations.    The two-hour seminar, scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at SAP in Palo Alto, Calif., is […]

     Phoenix-based Banner Health said it saved $41.5 million in a single year through a partnership that focused on reducing supply chain costs, eliminating clinical variations and improving the overall quality of care delivery.    Banner said by partnering with Premier, a performance improvement alliance of more than 2,500 U.S. hospitals and 81,000-plus “other” healthcare […]

     MercuryGate International, a transportation management solutions (TMS) service provider, has announced a partnership with JFE Pfe Ltd., a supply chain services provider, to create MercuryGate Asia Pacific.    MercuryGate has operated in the Pacific Rim region for some time, but said the move was to add a global face forits  TMS in the region, as well […]