19 jobs lost in Jade cargo software sale

Master Terminal, the port software that was going to turbocharge hi-tech firm Jade, has been sold to United States corporate Navis with the loss of 19 jobs.

Jade Logistics, which owned Master Terminal, was split off from Jade Software in 2017, to concentrate on developing and selling the system, designed for mixed cargo handling.

The sale of the software to logistics firm Navis, a subsidiary of Finnish company Cargotec, was completed in December and resulted in 19 redundancies.

Eight of the redundancies were overseas positions.

Jade Logistics was thought to be totally owned by USA Health Investors LLC but share registrations in December last year showed Jade Logistics chief executive David Lindsay owned 10 per cent of the shares in the company, marketing manager

Tony Davis had 2.5 per cent and global sales manager Kaustubh Dalvi had a 1.5 per cent shareholding.

Navis said the acquisition gave it the flexibility to offer customers a full range of terminal operating systems. It did not reveal what it paid.

Lindsay, who remains the chief executive of Jade Logistics, said Navis wanted to set up a general centre of excellence for cargo handling in Christchurch and provided stability in the growth of the business.

He said the late registration of the shareholdings was an administrative tidy-up before the sale and he did not personally receive any money from it.

Jade Logistics would continue operating in Christchurch and retained the right to sell Master Terminal in Asia, he said.

The operating system is said to be used by 100 ports in the mixed cargo sector.