Transnet Freight Rail (TFR) will implement the Navis Truck Appointment System at its City Deep Terminal in Johannesburg from July 6.
The online truck scheduling system will not only regulate the flow of trucks to the terminal, but will also enable physical distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The appointment system aims to improve customer service delivered at the terminal by the elimination of excessive truck queues at the gate, [thereby] limiting the maximum number of trucks lined up at the in-gate at any given time, and also limiting the waiting time before being processed at the in-gate aligned to demand and terminal capacity,” containers and automotive business and NatCor corridor acting GM Andiswa Dlanga explains.
TFR has already started engagements with customers and the provision of online training prior to going live. Support for customers will be in place after going live to minimise “teething problems” as the company migrates to the new online process.
The terminal will create appointments spread over the course of the day based on the resources, capacity and demand for evacuation or delivery into the terminal.
It has also created appointment windows over the operational period where customers will log into the system, select an appointment and proceed to call at the terminal.
“The truck booking system will resolve several challenges that are currently experienced, particularly around truck congestion and truck turnaround time,” Dlanga adds.
The new system will also enable the terminal to control the rate of collections and deliveries in line with capacity and demand, and will also reduce the cost of doing business with TFR in the long term.