Waiting Time Is Now a Planning Variable
Drewry’s August analysis found that global average vessel waiting times during the first seven months of the year had nearly doubled compared with the same period in 2019. Total time in port was 31% higher, with a larger share spent waiting for a berth. For shippers, this is more than a vessel-operations statistic: it signals longer and less predictable transit times.
Delays can shift container availability, disrupt production schedules, and increase the risk of demurrage and detention. Transit-time assumptions built on pre-disruption patterns may no longer support reliable inventory planning. Companies may need to revisit safety stock, promised delivery dates, and the timing of inland transportation bookings.
What Shippers Can Control
Shippers cannot create berth capacity, but they can reduce avoidable exposure. Appointment discipline matters at both origin and destination, particularly when terminals impose narrow pickup windows. Drayage capacity should be arranged before the vessel arrives, with backup options identified for congested gateways.
Ocean contracts also deserve closer attention. Negotiating sufficient free time, clearly defining when the clock starts, and confirming how weekends and holidays are treated can materially affect charges. Accurate visibility data is equally important. Event timestamps, terminal availability records, appointment history, and container interchange details can provide the evidence needed to challenge an incorrect invoice.
Calculating the Cost of One More Day
To estimate the real cost of an extra day at berth, add the effects across the shipment rather than looking only at freight. A practical formula is: daily inventory carrying cost, plus expected demurrage or detention exposure, plus drayage and storage impacts, plus production, labor, or customer-service costs caused by the delay.
For example, a shipment carrying $500,000 of inventory at an annual carrying rate of 12% costs about $164 per day in capital and insurance expense alone. Add a possible $250 equipment charge, $100 in storage, and $300 in operational disruption, and one additional day costs approximately $814. Repeating this calculation by lane makes the financial impact of unreliable port transit visible—and gives procurement and logistics teams a stronger basis for action.