What is VBS? The Vehicle Booking System is a slot allocation system designed to manage the flow of traffic in and out of the terminal. Why have a VBS? The idea of the VBS is to smooth the peaks and troughs in traffic flow through the terminal. This ensures consistent Truck Turn Times for the transport operators and allows the terminal to provide the correct level of manning and machinery for the task at hand. Why upgrade the existing VBS? The present system has operated since 2004 and in recent years it has become apparent there are a number of shortcomings which promotes poor practice. The main deficiency revolves around the treatment of late or non-cancelled slots and the impact this has on both the terminal and the ability of carriers to pick up these late cancellations. The new VBS system incorporates a number of disciplines which will drive behaviour and ensure that slots are returned to the pool in a timely manner that will allow other carriers the opportunity to utilise. It will also allow the terminal to resource more accurately against the amount of slots released in a zone. What changes have been made to the categories? The current system operates with three different categories, with carriers having the option to choose which category they join based on a fee structure. Under the new system carriers will be categorised (by the terminal) into an individual bracket based on throughput. The fee will be the same - $5/slot regardless of the category. However in the future slot price will vary for peak periods. For simplicity the four categories will be labelled A,B,C&D with A being the largest category. What category will I be bracketed into and on what basis? Based on throughput, carriers will be bracketed into one of (four) clearly defined categories. These categories will be reviewed on a quarterly basis and if the carrier s throughput justifies a change up or down within these four brackets this will be adjusted automatically and visible on the FACT VBS website. Any carrier can see where they sit as a percentage of total terminal throughput by accessing the My VBS Summary Page on the website. Effectively the VBS is now a percentage based system. A carrier s slot allocation (permanent or free sale) will be reflective of their volume handled at the Terminal. Example, Carrier SA handles 1% of the volume through the Terminal. Carrier SA is placed into category D with carriers of similar volume. If all the Carriers in this category collectively handle
12.5% of all containers through the Terminal. Then 12.5% of slots distributed prior to free sale will be allocated to that category. Why the need to bracket carriers? Under the current system all carriers (big & small) are competing with each other at slot drop time in order to secure slots with no caps on what is reserved for each carrier. Under the new system slots within each category are protected based on the collective throughput of each of the members of that category. Instead of competing with all carriers to pick up slots you are only competing with members of your own category and this pool is protected for exclusive use by members of this category. Any slots that remain unused will be tipped into free sale at 1.00PM the day prior to booked slot. When will the slot drops take place? The general slot allocation (drop) will occur each working day at 9.00AM. This is the general slot allocation and is category specific. At 1.00PM daily a second slot distribution will take place of all returned slots plus any additional slots the terminal can make available for the following day. This allocation will be available to all carriers who will compete equally. How far in advance will slots be released? Unlike the current system which has visibility of 5 or 4 days in advance the new system will work with a visibility of 3 days for all carriers regardless of category. I.e. on a Monday (Day 1) you will have the ability to pick up slots for the Wednesday of the same week. On the Tuesday (Day 2) you will have a further opportunity to pick up additional (protected) slots for Wednesday, but by Tuesday (Day 2) prior to 1.00PM you must have all unused slots returned for the Wednesday or penalties will apply. This is to create larger drops to allow companies a better chance of picking up slots. When I log on I see far fewer slots available than I previously did under the old system. This is because you are no longer competing for slots with every transport company accessing the terminal. You are now only competing with carriers that are in your category and the pool of slots available is representative of the size of this category. In theory there are fewer visible slots but they should be easier to pick up. Am I restricted in what slots I can pick up in any given slot drop? Yes carriers will be capped on what they can pick up on any given slot drop based on the percentage they represent in that category. This cap only applies until 1.00PM of the day prior to the slot booking, at which point free sale is activated and all restrictions are lifted so carriers have unlimited access to any available slots. Is this cap restrictive to what I can book leading up to the day of the booking? Yes in one sense it is restrictive as a cap will be in place, however by all carriers being capped at an amount according to their percentage allocation, there should be a portion of slots available appropriate to your percentage of business. Any requirements over this amount will need to be Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal Page 2
2400 0200 0400 0600 0800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200 2400 0200 0400 0600 Frequently Asked Questions picked up at 1.00PM the day before - at the point of free sale. Similarly any booked slots that are not required will need to be returned prior to 1.00PM the day before - or penalties will apply. Can I choose the zones where these reserved slots are allocated? Yes you can but you have to compete with other carriers online within your category to secure your preferred zone. Under the new system you are simply guaranteed a set amount for that period. What zones these are picked up for depends on your ability to secure your preferred zone at the slot drop. How will these caps work? The day is now divided into 4 defined periods: 1. Morning 0600 1100 2. Afternoon 1100 1600 3. Evening 1600 2200 4. Overnight 2200-0600 Day Example Overnight Period 2200-0600 Morning Period 0600-1100 Afternoon Period 1100-1600 Evening Period 1600-2200 Overnight Period 2200-0600 In the restricted sale period (Day 1-9.00AM through to Day 2-1.00PM) for the premium Morning and Afternoon period s, carriers will be capped by period and by zone i.e. in the restricted sale period (Day 1-9. 00AM through to Day 2-1.00PM) a carrier who has a guaranteed volume of 15 for the Morning period cannot book more than 15 within that period and will be capped firstly by period (no more than 15) and then secondly by zone. This may mean the carrier may be limited to no more than 4 slots in a given zone depending on their size. These restrictions are only in place up until 1.00PM the day before when all carriers have unlimited access to all slots. When will these caps apply? It is envisaged that these caps will only be in place for the premium periods Morning and Afternoon. Based on current terminal throughput it is unlikely that restrictions will be in place on the Evening Period - and the Overnight Period carriers should have unlimited access. What if I cannot secure sufficient slots to fully utilise my truck in a given zone? Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal Page 3
Carriers will have the flexibility of marrying slots with the next adjacent zone. I.e. if a truck wishes to drop off 2 export containers and pick up 2 import containers in the 9.00AM zone but can only secure 3 slots for this 9.00AM zone then the carrier has the option of picking up an additional slot in the 10.00AM zone to fully utilise his vehicle. The vehicle must arrive in the 10.00am timezone. Will my full complement of guaranteed slots be available from Day 1? No the allocation of slots will be released progressively over 2 days prior to the day of the booked slot. It is planned to release 80% of your allocated slots on Day 1, then the remaining slots (20%) on Day 2. By 9.00AM on Day 2 all of the guaranteed slots will be in the system. Any slots that are booked but not required will need to be returned prior to 1.00PM the day before - or penalties will apply. Example: For a Wednesday time slot booking - slots will be released at 9.00AM Monday (80%) and Tuesday (20%) at which point you would have received your entire compliment of guaranteed bookings for the Wednesday. Any unused slots (for Wed) need to be returned by 1.00PM Tuesday and any additional slot requirements (for Wednesday) can be picked up at the 1.00PM drop on the Tuesday. How long do the guaranteed slots stay in the system for my exclusive use? Your guaranteed slot allocation based on your throughput will stay in the system for 1.5 days (from Day 1-9.00AM until Day 2-1.00PM) i.e. if your capped amount is 30 slots between 0600 2200 then on Day 1-80% of these slots (24 slots) will be available for your exclusive use and a further 20% (6 slots) will be put in the system on Day 2 at 9.00AM. You will still need to book these slots to secure your preferred time zone. On Day 2 at 1.00PM any slots you have not booked from your protected pool will automatically be tipped back in the free sale pool that will become available to all carriers from 1.00PM on Day 2. If I do not take up my full allocation of guaranteed slots will I be penalised? No, any slots from your guaranteed allocation that remain unbooked before 1.00PM the day prior will automatically be returned to the free sale which will occur at 1.00PM the day prior to booking no penalties will apply. Will permanent slots still be available? Yes.... permanent slots will still be available for carriers, however at this stage it is planned to limit this to A, B & C categories only. A percentage of A, B & C categories slots will be issued as permanent slots, however the amount of permanent slots issued to each carrier vary and will be dependent on a number of criteria including the amount of non-peak zones carriers are prepared to utilise i.e.to incentivate carriers to work a percentage of non-peak zones then they will be compensated with an agreed amount of permanent slots. How will the number of permanent slots be decided for each carrier? The terminal will issue a fixed percentage of permanent slots for the use of A, B & C carriers. Any slots issued will be taken directly from their guaranteed pool and carriers will still be responsible for the management and cancellation of these slots if unused. The premium zones in which these Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal Page 4
permanent slots are allocated are dependent on criteria such as compliance (carrier behaviour) and preparedness to work a certain percentage of non-peak zones. Example of Permanent Slot Distribution: Carrier Zulu handles 5% of the total volume on trucks at the Terminal. Carrier Zulu is in category B, therefore carrier Zulu will be entitled to 5% of all permanent slot distributed by the Terminal. Note: This may vary depending on compliance and other criteria such as non-peak work. Will penalties be applied for non-compliance? Yes... penalties will be strictly enforced. Why is the Terminal going to enforce penalties? One of the biggest deficiencies of the current system is the amount of late cancellations or noshows. Currently as much as 25% of the total daily slots issued are cancelled within 4 hours of the booked time zone. When this occurs it is usually too late for other carriers to pick these slots up at such short notice and from a terminal operation perspective we find we have unutilised equipment due to these no shows and late cancellations. In future all unused slots must be returned by 1.00PM the day prior or penalties will apply. Currently the users that are using the system correctly are disadvantaged. With larger volumes and higher traffic flows, these measures should promote consistency for all stakeholders. How will I be treated if I just miss my nominated zone? Whilst we encourage all carriers to turn up in their nominated time zone, penalties will not apply 1 hour either side of the nominated zone.i.e. for a 10.00AM zone booking carriers will not be penalised if they turn up 1 hour before or 1 hour after the end of the nominated zone. Effectively this provides a 3 hour penalty free window for terminal access. For the sake of orderly processing all carriers are encouraged to arrive in their correct zone. Punctuality will be measured and this will be taken into consideration when issuing permanent or discretionary slots. The terminal also reserves the right to direct any early trucks to the standby lane and they will be serviced in their correct time zone in the event the terminal becomes congested. How will the penalties be applied? Penalties fall into three categories: 1. Late Cancellation Slots returned after 1.00PM the business day before use. This includes permanent slots. Fee to apply $ 25.00 + GST 2. Early (or late arrivals) Early / Late arrivals. Arriving more than 60 minutes either side of their nominated time zone. Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal Page 5
Example A nominated time zone is 10:00AM. Early / late penalties will apply to a vehicle arriving before 9.00AM or after 12:00PM. Fee to apply $ 50.00 + GST 3. No Show No Show event. Arriving 180 minutes after the commencement of the nominated time zone or simply not arriving. Fee to apply $ 100.00 + GST How do I dispute Non Conformance? There is a disputes resolution page. Here anyone can dispute any charges incurred. Once a carrier has received their daily notification message, they will have 2 x business days to dispute any incurred costs. Any event under dispute will not go to invoice until resolved. All disputes will be reviewed daily by the VBS clerk. How do I pay for slots or penalties? Unlike the present system where slots are paid for in advance, in future carriers will be invoiced in arrears on a fortnightly basis with an emailed invoice sent to their nominated account which will need to be settled within 14 days. These invoices will need to be settled in a timely fashion otherwise access to the terminal may be restricted. I am an infrequent terminal user, will I receive fortnightly invoices? The majority of carriers will be invoiced fortnightly however smaller carriers maybe eligible for monthly or ad-hoc invoicing. For smaller carriers please contact the VBS Clerk (08 8248 9304) to see if you re eligible for monthly billing. What will happen to my current credits and how will the new system phase in? From the commencement of the new VBS system these will be converted into a monetary value. This balance of credit will be offset against any post invoicing. In order to familiarise all users with the new VBS System, it will run for a trial period of 6 weeks with no penalties. During this period users will still be required to pay for slots and where applicable will be invoiced accordingly, however no penalties will apply for non-conformance. During this phase in period any non-compliance will be recorded along with the monetary penalties and will be visible in the My VBS Summary tab on the website. This will give an indication of how individual carriers are performing and provide time to rectify in-house procedures should these need attention. What is my VBS? Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal Page 6
My VBS is a carrier customised web page accessed via your FACT logon on the VBS tab. All carriers will need to complete contact information for operational and billing contacts within your organisation this can be found on the Update Contact Details item on the left hand side of the page. Until this is done carriers will not be able to commence using the upgraded system. It is FACT s intention to use these contacts to push information out to carriers on a regular basis about any day to day activities happening at the terminal in relation to container availability, vessel arrival, cut-offs etc. We would encourage carriers to register as many people as possible in your organisation to receive these messages. What is Daily Notification? Each morning, the carrier will receive a sum of transactions performed at the terminal the previous day along with any infringements which may have occurred. The carrier will have 48 hours to register any grievances or disputes on the notification before it goes to invoicing. What changes are there to the VBS page? - View / Edit Bookings The operator will see fewer slots at each distribution as they ll only see slots available for their category. - My Summary This will show a Total list of Slots used, Non compliances logged and any other charges such as Truck tags etc. Also each carrier can see their business they conduct through the terminal and how it relates to the 5 categories. - Imports Watch List This is a new module. A carrier can add and view containers for monitoring. When the Terminals system is updated from the previous port these will become visible. The status of any container is updated in real time. - The dispute resolution page Shows how to dispute any charges a transport company may incur. Where can I find a copy of the updated VBS rules? - An updated version of the rules can be viewed or down loaded from our web site www.flindersact.com.au Flinders Adelaide Container Terminal Page 7