Contecon Manzanillo took the land operation of the Specialized Container Terminal II (TEC II) to a new level by evacuating an average of two thousand import containers by road transport every 24 hours, a record that, beyond the volume achieved, puts on the table the impact that the recent extension of customs hours can have on the fluidity of the logistics chain in the main container port of Mexico.
The record was reached on August 20 and 21, when the terminal moved nearly four thousand containers by land over a two-day period. According to the company, this is a record figure for the Port of Manzanillo and was made possible after extending the windows for cargo pickup and strengthening coordination with Manzanillo Customs.
One of the factors behind this behavior was precisely the implementation of the “24/2” system , whereby customs operations are maintained for 24 continuous hours from Thursday to Friday. This allows for the distribution of appointments for the release of goods over a wider window and prevents truckers from having to interrupt their operations while waiting for customs services to reopen.
The result is relevant for port operations where simply increasing the capacity to receive and handle containers within the terminals is not enough . The speed at which cargo can leave the port area and continue to its inland destination also determines equipment turnover, yard utilization, and the system’s capacity to absorb larger volumes.
According to the Average Time Indicator for Trucking in Ports (ITPAP) , prepared by T21 Business Intelligence, the port had closed June with an average of 5:34:16 hours in the time it takes a truck to enter, pick up imported goods and leave the port, but a month later the indicator climbed to 12:50:27, a difference of 7:16:11.
In that sense, Customs increased from 2:43:36 to 6:11:30 hours; maneuvers went from 1:12:56 to 2:45:48; and waiting advanced from 1:37:43 to 3:53:08.
“Reaching this record demonstrates that the investments and changes we have made at Contecon are yielding results. We have strengthened our operational capacity and, at the same time, worked in coordination with the Manzanillo Customs Office to expedite the release of goods. This allows us to handle larger cargo volumes and be more efficient as part of the logistics chain,” said José Antonio Contreras, CEO of Contecon Manzanillo, in a press release.
The extended hours are combined with changes to the scheduling and service processes . According to data released by the terminal, since week 31, appointment fulfillment has remained above 95%, an indicator that points to greater continuity between the dispatch of containers and the arrival of the vehicles responsible for collecting them.
This performance also coincides with the capacity expansions that Contecon has been developing since 2023 at TEC II. The combination of infrastructure, operational capacity, and greater availability of customs services allowed for faster goods shipments and improved truck turnover during the days when the record was set.
Contreras believes that maintaining a more flexible operation can have effects that extend beyond the terminal itself. “A flexible and continuous customs operation, in coordination with the terminal, has a direct and positive impact on the logistics chain. We will continue to seek improvements and solutions that translate into faster turnaround times for carriers and a more efficient operation,” he added.
The challenge now will be maintaining those evacuation levels as volumes increase. Contecon estimates reaching approximately 9,800 containers per week moved by truck, a figure that would represent a 20% increase compared to the weekly average recorded during 2025.
Thus, the record set in August is not solely associated with the number of containers dispatched in 24 hours, but also with the ability to coordinate infrastructure, terminal, customs, and land transport . In a port where cargo growth demands that the various links in the chain advance at a similar pace, the continuity of outbound processes becomes crucial to prevent increased maritime capacity from shifting the pressure onto storage yards, access roads, and land transport.
For the first seven months of this year, Contecon Manzanillo has handled 1,022,181 twenty-foot containers (TEUs) , a 20.1% increase compared to the same period last year, according to data from the National Port System Administration (Asipoona) Manzanillo .
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