MILWAUKEE — Logjams being felt by some of the country’s largest coastal ports are also hitting ports around the Great Lakes.
“We’ve been seeing supply chain duress in a local way here at the port as well,” said Port Milwaukee Director Adam Tindall-Schlicht.
The issues come after the port reported commercial growth between 2018 and 2020.
Shipping container availability is among the challenges facing larger ports, which has also made its way to Milwaukee.
“One of the things that I’m calling for as Milwaukee’s port director is increased utilization of our port and other Great Lakes ports,” Tindall-Schlicht said. “Right now U.S. Customs has only approved the Port of Cleveland to handle maritime containers–that’s containers imported into the country via ships. If other ports like our port were approved by U.S. Customs, we could really position ourselves well to be a relief valve for those local businesses and manufacturers that rely on easy access to containers.”
Tindall-Schlicht believes the capacity is available in Milwaukee and throughout the rest of the Great Lakes, despite requiring smaller vessels.
“This is going to be an opportunity for us to look at the limitations and challenges of the North American supply chain as it’s utilized today, and hopefully learn from it, grow from it and make some changes that could present some fantastic business opportunities for our port and our regional economy,” he said.
Tindall-Schlicht believes getting approval would help them meet niche markets impacted by container shortages.
“We’ve been working over recent months knowing that there’s these logistic and supply chain issues related to the containerized market, about new ways to bring in those cargos directly to our port,” he said. “I’m hopeful that those efforts will prove fruitful for those producers and manufacturers in Milwaukee and throughout the state that are looking for a reprieve.”