UCR Business Students Visit Globalization at the Port of Los Angeles

UCR Business is strategically positioned in the hub of supply chains serving regional, domestic and global markets.  Students witnessed where economic value creation begins and ends at one of the most innovative and largest shipping ports in the world.

On November 18, UCR Business students from Dr. Sean Jasso's marketing course visited TraPac - the first shipping container firm with full automation at the Port of Los Angeles.  Students were given a private tour of the massive shipping yard by the director of maritime operations, Bill Schopp. 

Mr. Schopp explained the details of how 40% of American imports enter the Port of Los Angeles.  Students stood directly on the working dock of the ship just arriving from China with crane operators unloading and loading 4800 containers in the course of three days, non-stop, 24/7. 

The visit included observing the remote control center for trucking and train operations as well as a question and answer period in the board room.  Mr. Schopp provided a concluding lecture on the economic impact of the Port from the massive labor force, to the tax and tariff structure, to the time it takes to get Nike shoes from Shanghai to the dock in Los Angeles, to the retail shelves in Riverside and New York.

For more information on future visits to the Port of Los Angeles, contact Dr. Sean Jasso at seanj@ucr.edu.