Amid high-caliber research output and citation impact, analysis reveals region has unfilled potential to accelerate dementia cure

Philadelphia, PA, London, UK, March 20, 2012 - The Intellectual Property & Science business of Thomson Reuters today announced findings that the quality of dementia research in the United Kingdom (UK) is second in the world only to the United States, despite the low number of scientists working in this field, and that finding a cure can be accelerated by increasing the number of dementia researchers and investment, according to work done using the Thomson Reuters Web of Knowledge(TM). The findings are featured in an Alzheimer's UK Research Report "Defeating Dementia."

The results from the analysis reveal the UK published more research on dementia than any other country except the United States and ranks second in the world after Sweden in citation impact, which is the number of times UK research is referenced in dementia studies around the globe. Despite its high performance and influence, dementia research capacity in the UK is low when compared to cancer, stroke and heart disease. For every dementia research scientist there are six who work on cancer.

"Research output and citation impact in scientific literature is an ideal way to measure the quality and capacity of dementia research," said Karen Gurney, manager of bibliometric reporting at Thomson Reuters and analyst of this report. "This project illuminated an interesting dementia-research landscape in the UK, where this region is clearly playing an influential role despite its size."

The research study was commissioned by the UK's leading dementia research charity, Alzheimer's Research UK, in an effort to raise awareness and increase investment for the underfunded field. The data measuring the quality and size of dementia research in the UK was compiled by Thomson Reuters. Issued by Alzheimer's UK, the report, Defeating Dementia, also outlines 14 recommendations to the UK government based on feedback from scientists working in the field.

"The data provided by Thomson Reuters have been extremely valuable in allowing Alzheimer's Research UK to uncover the facts about dementia research output and quality in the UK," said Simon Ridley, head of research at Alzheimer's Research UK. "We wanted to dig deep into the issue of UK research capacity in this field. The work carried out by Thomson Reuters enabled us to do this and make a strong case for more investment in dementia research."

Rebecca Wood, chief executive, Alzheimer's Research UK, concurs. "Alzheimer's Research UK relies on robust data to support its expertise. The data provided by Thomson Reuters allowed us to present an in-depth picture of UK dementia research in a global context over the last fifty years. It has been very well-received by a range of stakeholders, including government and other research funders."

To view the Alzheimer's Research UK report, Defeating Dementia, visit: www.alzheimersresearchuk.org.

Source Thomson Reuters, IP Solutions

Container shipping lines have idled about 5 percent of global fleet capacity, or 800,000 20-foot equivalent units, as demand for container shipping space slows, Maersk Line CEO Soren Skou said Thursday.

That figure could soon increase to more than 1 million TEUs, a level not seen since 2009, when trade was severely hit by the financial crisis, Skou said in Singapore on his first overseas trip as CEO.

He forecast container demand growth will slow to between 5 and 8 percent in the next few years compared to an average of 10 to 11 percent over the past 25 years as Western economies weaken, manufacturing activity in Asia slows, and products become smaller in size.

"Demand growth will be less than what it was in the past," Skou said in a report by Reuters. "We do not have any lay up ships at this point. But we are certainly not ruling out laying up ships over the summer if the market is growing less than what we expected."

Maersk has already removed 9.5 percent of its Asia-Europe capacity and has decided against ordering ten more Triple-E vessels, the world's largest container ships, to add to its current fleet of 20. Despite the cuts, Maersk Line maintains its dominant 15.5 percent share of the container market.

Maersk has the flexibility to reduce its global capacity by a further 9 percent as the contracts for 20 percent of its chartered vessels are due to expire this year, Skou said.

The container shipping industry, which lost an estimated $5.2 billion last year, according to Drewry Shipping Consultants, is starting to lay ships up in an effort to support the increase in freight rates it has been announcing on the major east-west trade lanes since the beginning of the year.

The overcapacity of containerships and weak demand have led container lines to slash rates in an effort to fill those ships and gain more market share, but this has led to substantial losses.

Last year, overall freight rates were 8 percent lower than 2010 while bunker prices rose some 35 percent, Maersk said.

The world's largest container firm, a unit of Danish shipping and oil group A.P. Moller-Maersk, last month reported a net loss of $504.59 million in 2011, and has forecast more losses in 2012.

Skou, who became CEO two months ago, reiterated the firm's main mission was to restore profitability and reduce market overcapacity by adjusting its fleet and reducing the speed of vessels.

"As an industry, we have been investing ahead of demand. As demand has been slowing down, we do expect to have a situation with excess capacity over the coming years," he said.

"We have to invest less. We have to stop trying to outgrow each other, building bigger and bigger ships."

Maersk Line forecast container demand to slow to between 5 and 8 percent in the next few years compared to an average of 10 to 11 percent over the past 25 years as Western economies weaken, manufacturing activity in Asia slows, and products become smaller in size.

Skou said the company does not have any acquisition plans and does not believe there will be much more consolidation in the industry in the near term

- Peter T. Leach, The Journal of Commerce.

Hanjin Shipping is expanding its operations in the trans-Pacific, adding two joint services, one connecting the U.S. West Coast with the Middle East and South Asia, and the other with Japan.

Hanjin will operate both services as vessel-sharing agreements with other carriers.

Beginning April 27, Hanjin and NYK Lines will deploy 11 vessels with 6,500 20-foot equivalent units of capacity in a new Pacific South & Gulf Service, a direct service from the Middle East and Southeast Asia to the U.S. West Coast. The PSG service will provide a 19-day transit time from Singapore to Los Angeles, 17 days from Laem Chabang to Los Angeles and 13 days from Yantian to the U.S. West Coast.

Hanjin will launch the Japan & Pacific South Express Service on May 10 with Grand Alliance carriers NYK, OOCL and Hapag-Lloyd. The VSA partners will deploy five 3,400-TEU ships in the JPX service, which will use Hanjin’s TTI Terminal in the ports of Long Beach and Oakland.

Source JOC Sailings

The Liège Container Terminal is the first non-Dutch hinterland terminal that received the quality mark InlandLinks. This was announced today by the Wallonian Prime Minister Rudy Demotte during a visit to the port of Rotterdam.

Inland Links is the quality mark of and platform for container terminals in the hinterland, and offers, via www.inlandlinks.eu insight into the whole intermodal service package right up to the terminal level. This has been standardised, thus made comparable, on the basis of six criteria:


  • Availability of facilities and services
  • Safety and security
  • Accessibility and connections with the port of Rotterdam
  • ICT: data connections and integration with Portbase
  • Customs facilities
  • Sustainability and the environment

Tripling
Rotterdam expects to see container flows triple in the next 25 years. Due to the growth in world trade, the favourable geographic location and the increase in very large container ships, each with a capacity in the region of 20,000 units. Of the total 30 million TEU handled in 2035, 12 million are expected to be shipped in and out using smaller vessels from and to European ports. Some 18 million TEU will travel to and from the hinterland via intermodal transport. For this flow, InlandLinks should provide better and more sustainable connections.

More information on the criteria, advantages for shippers and service providers as well as the use of the InlandLinks system and www.inlandlinks.eu/en

Source Port of Rotterdam Authority

In January, the Drachten transport company MSC started the construction of a container terminal in Leeuwarden. The sheet pile wall is already in place and the pile driving has begun. The terminal will be alongside the Van Harinxma Canal and will cost € 8.5 million. The canal will get a turning basin, so that the 110-metre long container ships will be able to turn. The terminal is due to be completed in the summer of 2012.
Reachstacker on MCS terminal Meppel


Major client
Every week, four container ships will sail to and from Rotterdam. The company has a five-year contract to carry the containers for FrieslandCampina. Currently, these number about 300 a week. MCS transports 75,000 containers a year to the port of Rotterdam and already has terminals in Groningen and Meppel too.

Sources: Cobouw 27-02-2012, NOM, MCS and Port of Rotterdam Authority

Kotug has put the first hybrid tugboat into service in the port of Rotterdam. The E-Kotug type ship has diesel and electric engines and can switch between the two.

The hybrid system was retrofitted in the RT Adriaan and will be put into use officially at the end of April/early May 2012 as E-KOTUG. Kotug expects to slash the CO2, nitrogen oxide and particulate emissions by half. Other benefits will be more efficient fuel consumption and maintenance savings.


Source Port of Rotterdam Authority

 

This afternoon the largest project cargo transport ship in the world, the Blue Marlin of Dockwise, will arrive around 17.30 hours into the port of Rotterdam.

The ship departed on 28 January last from Nantong Port from China via the Yangtze River and carries three pontoons and 18 barge hulls. The pontoons and barge hulls will be unloaded by quay and/or floating cranes. The port of Rotterdam has a unique position as project cargo port thanks to an extensive fleet of floating cranes with maximum lifting capacity of 1,800 tonnes.

Source Port of Rotterdam Authority


MEDITERRANEAN Shipping Company's (MSC) 12,500-TEU Fabiola has become the largest containership to call at a North American port, after making a stop at Long Beach on a transpacific service.

The ship called at the Total Terminals International, and was accommodate with a channel depth of 76 feet (23 metres), making it one of the few ports that can handle ships of this size.

The shipping line is expected to continue to add more box ships ranging in size from 11,000-12,500 TEU into its transpacific services over the course of the year.

A report by Alphaliner cited port officials as saying that the MSC Fabiola, "Is the first of what is expected to be a string of larger containerships to be deployed by ocean carriers in Pacific Rim routes."

But the vessel was only 70 per cent full when it arrived and is not scheduled to make another transpacific voyage following its maiden call, said the Paris-based consultancy.

Alphaliner said MSC instead plans to operate three smaller 11,660-TEU vessels on the Far East-US west coast Pearl River Express (PRX) service, which is a joint service with CMA CGM.

"The other carriers active in the trade are not expected to follow MSC's example. They are not expected to deploy ships larger than 10,000 TEU on the transpacific route in the near future, as they are unlikely to be able to fully utilise the available capacity of such ships on the route. The larger ships also pose operational challenges," said Alphaliner.

It noted that the shipping line's giant newbuildings deployed on the Pearl River Express can not call at its regular Long Beach terminal, meaning that ships have to be diverted to the TTI terminal operated by Hanjin Shipping.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News

SINGAPORE-FLAGGED 3,100-TEU Bareli has run aground on a reef in bad weather off in northern Fujian coastal across the strait from Taipei while carrying 1,913 containers and 1,100 tonnes of heavy fuel oil for West Africa.

"The vessel has a severe crack in the fore body, and has taken on water and is currently on the rocks. There are no reports of oil spill, but booms are in place to prevent on if the situation should change," said a statement from the Oslo-based ship manager Torvald Klaveness.

Said Torvald Klaveness CEO Lasse Kristoffersen: "We are doing whatever we can to empty the ship of fuel oil and dangerous goods."

All 21 crew are Romanian, Filipino and South Africans are reported to have been taken safely ashore. "After the safe evacuation of all crew members already on Thursday night, we have been mobilising all available resources to get the salvage operation underway," said Mr Kristoffersen.

"First priority now is to empty the ship of fuel oil. Shanghai Salvage as been contracted for the operation and is mobilised on site together with our most senior ship management personnel," he said

The 2003-built and 212.75 metre long vessel is chartered by the world's third largest carrier CMA CGM, reported London's Containerisation International.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News

MARSHALL Islands-based and New York-listed Box Ships Inc has posted a net income of US$12.96 million from its initial public offering on April 14 to December 31 with pre-tax profit of $25.57 million and the time charter revenues of $39.13 million.

"2011 was our first year as a public company and we demonstrated excellent vessel performance with a 100 per cent vessel utilisation rate since inception and strong operating results," said Box Ships chairman and CEO Michael Bodouroglou.

Net income for the fourth quarter of 2011 was $5.58 million, while the EBITDA was $10.87 million and the time charter revenues were $16.58 million, according to the company statement.

The company operated an average of 5.92 vessels during the period ended December 31, 2011, earning an average time charter equivalent rate (TCE rate) of $24,363, or $25,043 on an adjusted basis per vessel per day.

In the fourth quarter, it operated an average of seven vessels during the fourth quarter, earning an average TCE rate of $24,601 or $25,373 on an adjusted basis per vessel per day.

Looking ahead, Mr Bodouroglou said: "2012 will be a challenging year. We expect our charter coverage and our ongoing cost control measures will continue to fund our quarterly dividends, which as we have previously stated we expect to total $1 per share for the full year 2012."

Regarding its chartering strategy in 2012, the company said it will focus on containerships with capacities ranging from 1,700 TEU to 7,000 TEU and employ them on short- to medium-term time charters of one to five years.

The company said this practice "will provide us with the benefit of stable cash flows from a diversified portfolio of charterers, while preserving the flexibility to capitalise on potentially rising rates when the current time charters expire."

So far, the company has secured 93 per cent of its fleet capacity in 2012 and 71 per cent in 2013 under such contracts.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News

CONTAINER carrier schedule reliability improved in February, according to the latest report from SeaIntel Maritime Analysis.

Reliability increased from 58 per cent in January to 60 per cent in February, the first increase in four months, American Shipper reported. SeaIntel considers a call on time if it happens on the same calendar day or the day before as scheduled. The analyst also noted an increase in the reliability among the top performing carriers.

For the top 20 container carriers, Maersk Line maintained top spot as the most reliable carrier at 75 per cent, followed by Hamburg Sud at 72 per cent, and APL at 67 per cent.

Compared to January, Maersk improved three per cent and APL seven per cent, while Hamburg Sud maintained its performance. In the past eight months, Maersk has been the top performer five times and Hamburg Sud the other three times.

Out of 8,400 measured arrivals in February 2012, SeaIntel's monthly report now includes 1,900 arrivals in trades to and from Africa, Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent. Most of these trades exhibit reliability in line with the global average. However the African import routes exhibit a markedly lower performance, at 29 per cent, from Asia as well as North Europe to Africa.

The measurements are based on SeaIntel's database of more than 58,000 arrivals from 2,200 vessels, 29 trade lanes and 51 carriers since July 2011.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News

PORT of Chongqing recorded a surge of 72.6 per cent in its container throughput to 65,200 TEU in February, Xinhua reports.

In the same month, the port's throughput tonnage grew 41.1 per cent to 9.48 million tonnes. Foreign trade cargo weighed 314,000 tonnes, up 68.4 per cent year on year.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News

VESSELS of 2,000 tonnes can now sail through the whole of the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal after the dredging came to an end recently, reports Xinhua.

The canal's shipping volume grew 8.3 per cent to 223 million tonnes in 2011 while its container movement increased 62.5 per cent to 52,000 TEU against 2010.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News

CONTAINERISED imports to the United States grew by 4.1 per cent in the month of January at 1.5 million TEU, a 11 per cent increase month over month from December attributed to furniture and auto sales surge.

During the month imports increased for the third consecutive month due to car part shipments up 19 per cent at around 56,600 TEU and home sales furniture at 167,300 TEU up six per cent, according to PIERS.

Menswear imports declined by 10 per cent in January against footwear growth of four per cent, according to Piers data figures.

During the month of February imports from Asia and China were up 2.9 per cent and two per cent respectively. But the meagre increase of 2.5 per cent forecast in US imports from Asia during the whole of 2012 is stark against those imports from Mexico in January at 68 per cent increase alone.

Import cargo is expected to increase by 10 per cent to 1.2 million TEU in March year on year across the US ports followed by Global Port Tracker, according to National Retail Federation it follows a slow month in February.

February is predictably a slow month reaching 1.1 million TEU, a decline of 4.2 per cent year on year. The month reported declines for west coast ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach of 5.3 per cent and 15.2 per cent respectively.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News

THE Middle East Dredging Company will sign a US$1.2 billion contract this week with the Steering Committee of the New Doha Port Project for the dredging and construction of the 15-metre deep access channel into the port, according to the Qatar News Agency.

Earlier this year, the first construction contract for the project was awarded to the China Harbour Engineering Company, who will be responsible for the construction of the port basin and inner breakwaters.

The port, in the region of Mesaieed, will be completed in three phases; the first phase will provide the port with an initial capacity of two million TEU from 2014. The second phase will not begin until 2020, while the third and final phase will commence in 2030.

Once completed New Doha Port, at a cost of $7 billion, will have a total cargo-handling capacity of six million TEU and will span 26.5 square kilometres adjacent to Doha city.

Plans are also in place to link the facility with the New Doha International Airport, according to project manager Nabil al-Buainain.

Master planning for the port is being done Royal Haskoning, with the Scott Wilson Group and Worley Parsons responsible for the its overall design.

Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
 

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The magazine JŪRA has been published since 1935.
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