Staten Island, N.Y. - New York Container Terminal Inc. (NYCT), a full-service ocean container and intermodal cargo-handling facility in the Port of New York and New Jersey, today announced that its Centralized Examination Site (CES) has handled more than 2,000 container inspections since opening in January.
The NYCT facility is meeting all U.S. Customs and Border Protection requirements to operate as a Comprehensive CES and attracting new customers to use the facility from customers across the entire port.
A Comprehensive CES performs all inspections which could be ordered on an ocean container entering the United States, including x-ray scanning, agricultural checks and intensive cargo exams. NYCT began developing the Comprehensive CES physical plant last year, following a U.S. Customs mandate to consolidate inspection operations at the Port of New York and New Jersey. The NYCT CES has been fully operational since Jan. 9, 2012, after modifications and improvements to the facility were completed according to specifications provided by U.S. Customs. The project was managed by Brad Winfree, Director of Logistics, reporting directly to James J. Devine, NYCT CEO.
"Facing an extremely aggressive timeline to have the CES up and running, we were able to complete development and implement an operating procedure which meets NYCT standards for quality," Devine said. "U.S. Customs was a great facilitator of the project. We will continue to work as a team to improve operational efficiency for all port customers."
NYCT made a significant investment to develop the off-terminal CES on a 10-acre site across the street from its marine terminal and adjacent to the company's on-dock rail ramp. An existing 212,000-square-foot warehouse facility was retrofitted to accommodate U.S. Customs and Border Protection, providing ample space for all inspection activity. Special modifications were made to the facility's truck doors to optimize agricultural inspections. A new gatehouse and fencing were installed for security. The yard was paved and laid out specifically to facilitate safe x-ray screening of containers, while providing ample parking space for dry and refrigerated shipments. This has resulted in fast turn times with direct economic benefit for forwarders, brokers, ocean carriers and cargo owners.