Ports handled a record high of just over 452.3 million metric tonnes of freight in 2004, up 1.9% from the previous record set in 2003. However, this was a marked slowdown from the growth rate of 8.7% recorded in 2003.

International cargo accounted for virtually all of the increase in tonnage during 2004.

Despite a protracted labour dispute in the iron ore industry, international shipments increased 2.6% to a record 314.6 million tonnes. Sharp gains in crude petroleum, grains and potash offset equally sharp declines in shipments of iron ores and concentrates and coal.

Ports handled 137.8 million tonnes of domestic cargo, virtually unchanged from 2003. Domestic shipments of crude petroleum, wheat and newsprint declined, while shipments of stone, sand, gravel and crushed stone and limestone were on the rise.

Growth in container traffic continued unabated in both volume and tonnage handled. In 2004, ports handled a record 3.7 million twenty-foot equivalents (TEUs) containing 31.2 million tonnes of cargo, up from 3.4 million TEUs and 28.2 million tonnes in 2003.

The port of Sept-Îles, including Pointe-Noire, recorded the biggest decline in tonnage among the 20 largest ports (-25.0%). Shipping activity at the port fell to 17.0 million tonnes, its lowest level since 1982. A prolonged labour dispute at two mining companies resulted in a 26.7% plunge in shipments of the port's major commodity, iron ore and concentrates.

Activity at the port of Vancouver, the nation's busiest port, rose 10.4% to 75.0 million tonnes in 2004, spurred by higher demand from Asia. The gain was due to increased shipments of several bulk commodities, coupled with a record volume of containerized cargo.

At the port of Saint John, New Brunswick, shipments remained virtually unchanged at 26.2 million tonnes. Domestic shipments of crude petroleum fell in the wake of declining oil production from the offshore fields of Newfoundland and Labrador.

In Montreal, including Contrecoeur, cargo reached 23.3 million tonnes, its highest level since 1984. A record volume of container traffic contributed to a surge in international activity. Containerized cargo accounted for 58% of the international cargo handled at the port.

Shipments at the port of Quebec, including Lévis, reached a record 21.7 million tonnes in 2004, up 6.3% from 2003. An upswing in international cargo, specifically iron ores and concentrates, coal and fuel oils, was the main contributor to the increase.

Total cargo handled at Fraser River port rose 11.5% to 14.9 million tonnes, led by an increase in international containerized shipments. Since 2002, the volume of container traffic at the port has more than tripled, and the tonnage of containerized cargo now accounts for 43.0% of its international cargo.

At the port of Halifax, shipments remained virtually unchanged at 14.2 million tonnes. In 2004, an increase in international inbound shipments of crude petroleum, the port's primary commodity, offset a sharp decline in shipments of domestic crude petroleum. Halifax was the third busiest container port in the country.

Canada's marine traffic to and from the United States held steady at 123.3 million tonnes as a gain in outbound shipments offset a decline in inbound cargo. Increased shipments of crude petroleum destined for the Atlantic and Gulf Coast states continued to account for the bulk of the increase in outbound cargo. The decline in inbound cargo was driven by a sharp drop in coal arriving from the Great Lakes region of the United States.

Marine traffic to and from overseas ports reached a record 191.3 million tonnes in 2004. Inbound shipments from overseas ports, fuelled by a second consecutive year of record shipments of crude petroleum, were the principal source behind the growth. Outbound shipments showed only a moderate gain.

Note: International cargo refers to cargo shipped between Canadian ports and foreign ports in the United States or overseas. Domestic cargo refers to cargo shipped between Canadian ports. Domestic cargo is handled twice by the Canadian port and terminal system, once when loaded and again when unloaded.

's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands - Quintiq, a leading provider of advanced planning and scheduling (APS) solutions,announced the release that builds on the foundation of Quintiq proven technology.

The Quintiq Aviation Planning & Optimization Solution offers a fully integrated solution for tactical planning, operational scheduling and real-time event management. It supports the comprehensive workforce and resource planning of all aviation operations, including aircrafts, crew, gates and ground staff. Each aspect has its own planning module that can stand alone or be fully integrated with other modules. As a unique solution that supports multiple structures, Quintiq offers airline operators and airports the unique ability to integrate multiple networks across different planning horizons.

Addressing real challenges today; supporting growth tomorrow

In today's global aviation industry, airlines are buffeted by rising fuel prices, changing employment regulations and rapid shifts in consumer preferences in the wake of escalating and spreading threats of terrorism. Traditional airline business models have fundamental problems with operating costs and productivity, making them ill equipped to support sustained profitability in rapidly changing environments. Bankruptcy, liquidation and consolidation of major network carriers are all painfully commonplace. And, recently a number of American airliners indicated that they suffered from delays because of their "inability" to consistently position aircraft and crews as needed to execute the flight schedule on time.

"The new Quintiq Aviation Planning & Optimization Solution combines our expertise in planning and scheduling with a thorough understanding of aviation needs developed through our work with the industry over the past several years," said Martijn van Gils, Marketing Director at Quintiq. "This solution is an excellent example of the value of the unique Quintiq approach, which provides a foundation for further growth by enhancing the flexibility in planning the resources as an aviation service supplier."

Business-wide integration and benefits

The solution focuses on all aspects of planning, including fleet, crew, ground staff and airport resources. It enables planning across multiple structures, taking into consideration multiple planning levels and multiple resources - a capability that is one of the unique aspects of the Quintiq solution. It also provides full-featured strategic planning enabling optimization of staff and resources according to what-if scenarios, tactical planning, resource planning for optimized aircraft and gates optimization, as well as staff rosters and shift planning. Advanced real-time event management and dispatching, with revision management is also fully supported by the Quintiq solution.

The Quintiq Aviation Planning & Optimization Solution delivers optimal planning quality based on KPIs. It provides aviation company planners with easier to use, more feature-rich planning capabilities. And it supports planners at all levels with company-wide transparency that makes the consequences of planning modifications immediately clear to all planners. The result: optimal usage of aircrafts, increased income, higher employee productivity, improved operational efficiency and significant cost savings.

Itinerant movements (flights from one airport to another) increased 3.9% (+11,492 movements) in June compared with the same month a year earlier. Local movements (flights that remain in the vicinity of the airport) increased 22.1% (+24,968 movements) in June compared with June 2006.

O'Rourke, 35, was selected after an extensive search to find a sales and marketing manager with just the right blend of traditional and cutting-edge marketing and CRM expertise. He will report directly to Larry Futers, MMSCAN's Director of Marketing.

"CRM activities have played an integral role in Kevin's day-to-day responsibilities for some large companies in Canada," said Futers. "His excellent marketing credentials in the automotive and marine industries are all the more enhanced by his extensive experience with web-based and on-line marketing. He is an excellent addition to Mitsubishi's marketing team and brings a wealth of new and innovative ideas to the table."

Said O'Rourke: "Mitsubishi Canada is a rapidly growing brand in a very exciting market. I'm looking forward to being part of MMSCAN's marketing team and to delivering cutting-edge branding techniques as Mitsubishi continues to develop and deliver what has been a highly creative and hard-hitting plan for brand awareness nationwide."

O'Rourke comes to MMSCAN from Yamaha Motor Canada, where he served as National Manager, Parts and Accessories, and was in charge of marketing, promotion and sales coordination of recreational and leisure products and services to Yamaha's national dealer network. Prior to Yamaha, he served in management positions of ever-increasing responsibility with Mercury Marine Canada, the Canadian Marine Manufacturers Association.

A graduate of Durham College of Applied Arts and Technology, O'Rourke studies focused on sports and recreation marketing.


David Sherrard joins Mitsubishi Canada

- Market Analyst To Support Future Growth -

MISSISSAUGA - Mitsubishi Motor Sales Of Canada Inc.
(MMSCAN) announced, the appointment of David Sherrard as Marketing Analyst, effective immediately.

Given Mitsubishi's recent arrival in the Canadian market (only four and a half years ago), and as part of the strategic reorganization of key departments, the areas of research and planning have been identified as increasingly important to the success of the company and to responding better to the needs of the Canadian market.

In this new position, Mr. Sherrard will be responsible for handling market research, database analytics, product planning and pricing support; as well as providing budget coordination for the dealer tactical advertising program.

A recent graduate of the DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Mr. Sherrard placed second in Canada's Next Top Ad Exec Competition earlier this year.

"In creating and filling this new position, we'll be better equipped to provide consumers with vehicles that are better suited to their changing needs and desires," said Larry Futers, director of National Marketing for MMSCAN.

Waitrose is one of the largest food retailers in the UK. It combines the convenience of a supermarket with the expertise and service of a specialist shop. Waitrose takes special pride in the freshness and quality of its food. Fresh produce arrives daily at its branches. To support business growth and improve the efficiency of its store delivery operation, Waitrose started a selection process for implementing a state-of-the-art centralised transport planning solution. Until now the company has been using a mix of manual planning, spreadsheet and planning software. This approach was no longer able to support the increasingly complex puzzle of delivering a variety of products to its branches, including many perishable goods, which have to be delivered as early as possible.

Having spent some time looking for potential suppliers Waitrose selected five software solutions. Two vendors were then asked to prepare a Proof of Concept to ensure that they really met the requirements. Quintiq demonstrated that its software could capture any business rule and was really capable of allowing Waitrose to plan in the way they wanted to. Quintiq was also able to show that Waitrose could reduce costs through the implementation of an Advanced Planning Solution.

Waitrose will use the Quintiq planning system to create a tactical plan based on expected volumes. This plan will then be used as the basis for the daily load plan, which is made for the following day. The Quintiq system will then also deal with daily exceptions as they occur. In addition it offers a site management solution for the movement of trailers between a number of warehouses at the Bracknell and Aylesford RDCs. The solution will go live in early 2008.

"The key reason why we chose Quintiq was the ability of the project team to work with us and to show us a perfect-fit solution for all our long- and short-term planning challenges", says Helen Heighes, Manager Distribution Projects from Waitrose. "To organise and plan multiple fleets from one central location gives visibility and flexibility throughout the entire planning process."

"For companies like Waitrose that offer a variety of fresh products, effective planning is key in delivering on its quality promise. Quintiq is proud to be able to contribute to this by providing its state-of-the-art planning solution. Based on our wide experience in the transport sector, we are convinced that our solution will help Waitrose boost its efficiency and improve customer satisfaction," says Arjen Heeres, COO at Quintiq.

In 2005, Canada's trucking industry recorded 3.7% annual growth. It was the second largest increase among the eight segments in the nation's transportation sector and was preceded only by air transportation, which registered a growth rate of 10.8%.

Truck transportation still accounted for the largest share of transportation and warehousing (28.8%), as measured by the gross domestic product.

In 2005, the roughly 3,360 Canada-based for-hire carriers with annual revenues of $1 million or more earned $27.0 billion in seasonally adjusted operating revenues.

These operating revenues, which increased 7% from 2004, grew steadily during 2005, from $6.29 billion in the first quarter to $7.34 billion in the fourth quarter.

The same companies registered $24.9 billion in operating expenses, up 6% from 2004.

Still, despite increases in expenses, especially those related to wages and fuel purchases, for-hire carriers continued to register seasonally adjusted operating ratios that were among the lowest in more than a decade.

An analysis of balance sheets and income statements reveals that trucking companies saw a number of their items deteriorate in 2005. For example, their net operating revenues were $1.03 billion, down 30% from 2004.

Overall, total assets rose 12.4% to $13.5 billion, while total liabilities reached $9.3 billion, up 17.7%.

The owner's equity increased to $4.2 billion in 2005 from $4.1 billion in 2004.

TORONTO - Porter Airlines has received official clearance from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to provide scheduled and charter service. The first planned destination is New York through Newark Liberty International Airport, with plans to ultimately serve as many as nine U.S. destinations, including New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cincinnati and Cleveland.

In its disposition, the DOT states that the approval is consistent with the terms of the U.S.-Canada Air Transport Agreement and in the public interest. In addition, the DOT found that Porter is operationally and financially qualified to conduct its proposed operations.

"This is a significant day for Porter," said Robert Deluce, president and CEO of Porter Airlines. "We will now be able to offer true competition and superior service on a number of U.S. routes. Regular service to New York will begin later this year and not later than the early part of 2008. This is great news for business and leisure travellers, for the city of Toronto and the downtown economy."

Porter's primary focus is on short-haul Canadian and U.S. destinations within 500 nm of its base at Toronto City Centre Airport, only a few kilometers from the city's financial and entertainment districts.

The airline's emphasis on speed, convenience and service has changed how people fly to and from Toronto. Since launching its first scheduled service to Ottawa in October, Porter has added Montreal to its schedule and will begin flying to Halifax on June 29.

New vehicle sales rose to 147,042 in April, an increase of 9,496 units compared to March. This gain can be attributed to increased sales of North American-built passenger cars and trucks (which include minivans, sport-utility vehicles, light and heavy trucks, vans and buses).

In recent months, new motor vehicle sales experienced volatility with periods of gains and offsetting declines. Much of this volatility resulted from dealer promotions and the introduction of new 2007 models. Previously, sales had remained relatively stable from the end of 2005 through the first half of 2006.

Based on preliminary sales data from the automotive industry, new motor vehicle sales in May remained essentially unchanged from April.

North American-built passenger car sales skyrocket

Total passenger car sales jumped 8.5% in April to 75,890 units, the highest sales level since February 2003. This increase followed consecutive declines in January and February and flat sales in March. Prior to these recent fluctuations, sales of passenger cars had been relatively stable since the second half of 2005.

After experiencing three consecutive monthly declines, sales of North American-built passenger cars soared 13.4% in April to 50,095 units. This gain more than offset sales declines in January, February and March 2007. Overseas-built passenger car sales saw little change in April compared to March levels.

Truck sales also advanced in April, up 5.3% to 71,152 units, in contrast to the 0.1% increase observed in March. Although they fluctuated in 2006, truck sales have remained strong. The growth rate of truck sales outpaced that of passenger car sales in the first four months of 2007, despite similar growth rates in 2006.

More than half of the increase in national sales occurs in Ontario

Eight provinces posted sales gains in April. After three consecutive monthly declines, new motor vehicle sales in Ontario surged 11.8% to 54,265 vehicles in April, an increase of 5,730 units over the previous month. This rise accounted for just over 60% of the national increase.

Nova Scotia experienced the largest percentage gain, advancing 13.1% to 4,226 vehicles. This increase more than offset the previous four consecutive monthly declines.

Quebec (+7.4%) and Saskatchewan (+7.1%) also posted gains above the national average (+6.9%). Quebec's increase followed three consecutive monthly declines.

Alberta (-3.5%) and New Brunswick (-0.4%) were the only provinces to experience declines in April. Despite the drop in Alberta, the number of units sold in April was the sixth highest sales level ever recorded in that province's history. This decrease followed a 6.0% gain in March that had set the highest monthly sales level ever reached for Alberta. The slip in new motor vehicle sales in New Brunswick followed a 1.2% increase in March.

Note to readers

All data in this release are seasonally adjusted.

Passenger cars include those used for personal and commercial purposes, such as taxis or rental cars. Trucks include minivans, sport-utility vehicles, light and heavy trucks, vans and buses.

North American-built new motor vehicles include vehicles manufactured or assembled in Canada, the United States or Mexico. All other new motor vehicles are considered to have been manufactured overseas.

For reasons of confidentiality, data for Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut are included with those for British Columbia.

The New Motor Vehicle Sales Survey is compiled on the basis of figures obtained from motor vehicle manufacturers and importers. These results may vary from those obtained directly from auto dealers, due to possible differences in record keeping.

Improvement of the engines, more efficient structures and advanced aerodynamics and systems each contribute roughly a third to efficiency gains.

Together with the engine manufacturers, we work very aggressively on new designs and new technology to stretch targets on fuel efficiency. Aerodynamics are fundamental to a plane. This is how efficiently you 'lift' the aircraft. The more robust the aerodynamics, the better you are on fuel efficiency, CO2 efficiency and noise. Advanced structures and materials determine how much lighter you can make the plane. The fuselage of our newest 787 Dreamliner plane, for instance, is made primarily of carbon-fiber composite materials. This material is much lighter and stronger, reducing the overall weight. Weight reduction is most important for environmental performance.

One of the big trends is advanced electric systems. Airplanes in the past have relied heavily on hydraulic and pneumatic technology. Electric technology lets you be more precise in your control. You can control the air conditioning more precisely, for instance, by extracting power from the engines to run the air conditioning. So if we can run the air conditioning with an electric resource instead of taking the air off the engine, it means that we're more efficient.

A big issue in Europe is air-traffic management. A study by Eurocontrol says that we could achieve up to 12% reduction in CO2 emissions with the implementation of an efficient ATM system. That doesn't require any new aircraft, or any new technology, it is a policy issue.

Boeing is partnering with airports, airlines and civil aviation authorities at various international airports to improve airport operational efficiencies, for example by implementing Continuous Descent Arrival procedures. These approach paths reduce the exposure to aircraft noise and reduce fuel consumption and associated emissions. Almost every airport is unique in its geography, the amount of traffic at different times of the day – and you have different organisations involved from airport to airport, so it will take some time to implement this everywhere.

Fuels, airplanes, air-traffic management and ground operations are improving. All are important. Air-traffic management improvements represent the greatest short-term opportunities for significant reductions in CO2 emissions.

Talking about fuels - Are you also looking at ways to diversify the fuel mix in the aviation sector? I hear biofuels are now being considered for use in airplanes as well as in cars…

This is one of the new developments that we're really excited about. Just a few weeks ago – on 24 April – we announced that we are working on a biofuel-flight demonstration, together with Virgin Atlantic and General Electric, scheduled for 2008. We are in the testing phase right now, sorting through dozens of samples of different types of fuels to select the one that we'll use for the biofuel demonstration.

Normally, due to the chemical composition these types of fuels freeze more easily than crude oil processed fuel. So we have to do some extra processing. We are looking at different blends of biofuels with more conventional sources of fuel. If you can run the plane on a 50% blend, you’ll reduce your carbon footprint by maybe 20-25% on that day. So while we may not get the full benefit, we will achieve a partial benefit in terms of carbon reduction. We are aiming to achieve properties that look like, act like, and perform like today's fuel, and therefore can be used in today's planes.

What timeframe are you looking at to achieve the 50% blend? Will it be short term or long term?

The blend can be used as soon as it's available, in all the airplanes that are already flying, without modification. No major changes of distribution networks, storage networks will be necessary.

This does not mean that in ten years' time you will be able to buy bio-fuel blend everywhere. It will take time for the processing capacity to rise, to have the right amount of plant stock and the processing capability. But what we can foresee is that within 10 years, there will be certain airports with fuel tanks where this blend will be available. When you fly to that airport, that’s the fuel you get. When you fly to another airport, you might get a more conventional fuel.

The 50% blend figure is our target. We'd like to go to 100%, but we don't believe that is technically feasible at the moment. For the biofuels demonstration that we’ll do next year, we'll actually test the 50% blend in the lab. If it doesn't have the properties that we need, then we’ll try a 40% blend, and then we’ll try a 30% blend, but hopefully we’ll be close to 50% and get the performance we need.

How many airports do you expect will have the blend available ten years from now? Will they be in Europe mainly, or do you expect them to be in the US, or elsewhere?

I expect the blend to be available in different places at different points in time - depending on the entrepreneurs, the different types of feed stock. There will probably be different types of blends around the world, depending on the feed stock that is most available in the region and the required processes.

Would you expect a country like Brazil – which is a leader in bio-fuels – to provide a lot of it?

Yes. They're working actively on this.

Has the US got specific targets on this?

There are no specific targets for jet fuel in the US. This is just in the feasibility stage. But there are fuel providers in the US working on this as there are in Europe and in the Asia-Pacific region.

What about sustainability issues – the competition with food crops for example, which has already put pressure on corn prices in some countries?

We do have criteria to make sure we're not competing with food users, to make sure that there are adequate yields so you’re not using up land that's otherwise occupied. To make sure you’re not using up water resources and that you’re not displacing forests or indigenous plants.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (the FAA) recently chaired a conference [in October 2006] which launched the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI). It laid out what they called the 'road map' which looked out over 20-30 years to assess what would need to be done in R&D, regulatory framework to industrialise and commercialise alternative fuels. The road map has been an act of collaboration for the parties involved on a voluntary basis.

We looked at the road map, and it actually contained a flight demonstration for bio-fuel, which was planned in five years. That inspired us to see if we could do better, and it resulted in setting the goal and getting partners lined up to actually do a flight demonstration next year. It may not be the only one – I hope it won't be the only one – but it's a start.

How will the inclusion of aviation in the EU carbon-trading systems (Emissions Trading Scheme - ETS) make an impact on Boeing's business?

The ETS proposal would require airlines to have allocations and credits for their emissions. Our aim – regardless of the details – is to provide efficient solutions.

Efficient solutions can involve new products, if airlines 'change out' their fleet over an investment period to significantly reduce their carbon emissions. Or it can involve working to improve operations – ground operations or flight operations – or it can involve working with air traffic management. Eurocontrol, for instance, has set some targets. Boeing is actively involved in working on the Single European Sky.

Obviously the EU-ETS will encourage new technology, so clearly that must be good news for you. Do you expect any extra business or a direct impact on orders?

We are already sold out until 2011, so we can't produce any more. It's a long-term market, orders are made far in advance…

So, are you planning to extend production capacity, then?

We're very cautious, and carefully consider changes in capacity, because it’s a significant investment and it's a long supply chain. And we're just very cautious about ramping production up and down. It has a massive impact if you don't get it right.

Do you have particular concerns regarding the inclusion of aviation in the EU-ETS?

One of our concerns is to make sure we have a global solution. We can’t design for 25% of the market very effectively, because it splits our resources. Global policy solutions are preferable due to the global nature of aviation. We would like to see these issues worked on at an international level, and in adherence to principles and findings of the International Civil Aviation Organisation, to the maximum extent possible.

Obviously, no market will require you to pollute more than in the neighbouring country, so why wouldn’t you adapt your whole fleet to the stricter EU standard?

Let me give you an example. London Heathrow has very strict noise rules called the 'quota-count system' - the QC system. In order to meet some of those rules, you have to make compromises in the design. So, it's been a well-publicised fact during the case of the A380 that the design of the engine, and the nacelle and so on, had to be adjusted to meet London noise at a higher fuel burn. So, CO2 was sacrificed in order to meet noise-requirements for the community that lives around London. Is that a good trade for the climate? That's the kind of question that drives us to say that global solutions are the better solutions.

So in a nutshell, you don't expect much impact from ETS inclusion on your business?

As an aircraft manufacturer and as a technology company, we're always trying to be ahead, developing and introducing new technologies to create better environmental performance for commercial jetliners, regardless of policy discussions. If you're in an industry such as ours, with lead times like ours, you think long ahead.

The bio-fuels research we started wasn't particularly triggered by a discussion about ETS. You have to continuously make improvements to be competitive. The regulatory framework should recognise that we are already working as fast as we can to make improvements.

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