Transforming Port Management: Utilising emerging technologies for global efficiency

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Emerging technologies are set to revolutionise port management and operations over the next decade, driving significant improvements in global efficiency, sustainability, and security. Because technology is everywhere, in each small and single part of the global supply chain, ports are in the centre and play an essential and pivotal role in global trade.

Hence, I firmly believe that port environment and ecosystems can and will be the lever towards more efficient, resilient and secure trade. Port environment can leverage technology towards the necessary digital transformation to achieve smooth and efficient trade.

The future is digital, and the future is now!

Quite a lot of innovative strategies are already deployed everywhere in the maritime world, going from advanced automation of terminals to several autonomous modes of transport (automated trucks, barges, vessels, …). These automation deployments, smaller or bigger depending on the size of ports as well as taking place in developed or developing parts of the world, are there to stay, but you will see a rapid evolution towards the number of automation deployments on the one hand and extensive scaling of existing automation on the other hand.

As a logical consequence of a high degree of automation, you encounter a huge increase and an ultra-rapid growth of the use of IoT- and sensor devices in port environments; every physical asset of a port is equipped with these kinds of devices, and they will give a boost towards overall port efficiency, not only in the handling of cargo in port operations itself but also in the stages of operational planning. Higher port and logistics operational efficiency will be necessary for steady organic and sustainable growth.

The transformative impact of technology mentioned through automation and IoT-/sensor devices will boost efficiency and help ports in their safety and security strategies. As the digital (r)evolution goes much faster than humankind and the human brain can absorb and process, technology and sensors will deliver us with the extra’ human senses’ such as eyes, ears, touch and smell – using smart cameras, drones, radars, underwater sound sensors to analyse quay assets, virtual to protect air quality and detect noxious substances, etc.

Data analytics with AI and machine learning will help us to enlarge the scale of the above-mentioned use of technologies, and the generated models will be able to better predict and forecast potential disruptions, making us more resilient and to (re)act more quickly: learn from the past to better understand the future!

The innovative strategies that we as humans need to adopt are, first, a culture for continuous improvement, learning from the results of the early stages of innovations and cycles and iterating time and time again to improve and ameliorate. This requires a strict commitment from leadership teams and clear involvement and engagement from everybody involved in this improvement process.

Also, we will need to foster collaboration with all stakeholders to ensure these seamless cargo and port operations, as well as foster the integration of port and port community systems with the broader supply chain management systems to expand and enhance visibility towards a more efficient planning process.

How can innovative international collaboration reshape the landscape of global supply chains and enhance the efficiency of our ports in an increasingly interconnected world?

International collaboration can potentially reshape global supply chains and significantly enhance port efficiency. And, of course, technology and the digital transformation of ports and port ecosystems will help and assist in this. However, technology is only a means to an end here – it needs a very important human factor: trust!

Trust and the willingness to share data, to share the right data at the right time. Internet technology has given us a huge opportunity to interconnect our platforms. Through this unique opportunity, we can create and shape the most efficient global trade that we can think of.

For this reason, IPCSA launched in 2020 a governance platform, Network of Trusted Networks, precisely to facilitate international and cross-border data exchange. The initiative and the collaboration itself need to come from its members. However, the platform is there to create a digital trust layer to make handshakes on the exchange of data elements.

Port Community Systems have, for several years, extensive experience in sharing data with other connected parties or platforms, as well as reusing data for relevant involved business processes in maritime trade and port operations in handling cargo.

Recent evolutions in technology enhanced PCSs into intelligent data-sharing platforms to collaborate with peer stakeholders in global trade and to deliver real-time information on the location of cargo, vessels, hinterland traffic, etc., all to optimise and streamline their customers’ business processes.

Improving visibility and transparency across the supply chain through data sharing benefits all and leads to better coordination, reduced delays and more efficient cargo handling.

However, for international collaboration to succeed, we need to adopt global standards – and much more than we do today- in a too limited way. By adopting global standards for data formats and communication protocols based on agreed operational procedures, we can reach a higher and necessary level of interoperability between systems and stakeholders.

In the context of a higher degree of interoperable capabilities, PCSs will, without doubt, excel based on their tremendous experience and knowledge to build a technical, digital trust layer for all stakeholders involved in global maritime trade and logistics.

Of course, nothing comes for free. To make interoperability happen and for trade to really benefit from exchanging trade data, which is always out there somewhere in a digital way, we need international partnerships through joint innovation and research projects, leading to pilot projects and testbeds in a real-world environment, to prove that collaborating in data exchange works and that they provide valuable insights towards more efficient trade.

This needs courage and commitment from believers and from those who want to invest in a more reliable and resilient supply chain – not for their own financial benefit but for the benefit of a worldwide community.

We need to leverage collaboration through new ways of innovative thinking out-of-the-box by forging partnerships in any way we can: establishing joint ventures to invest in innovation projects and collaborative funding options either by financial investments or by pooling resources from multiple stakeholders. We need to use human’s most precious quality: creativity!

Global trade and supply chain doesn’t come or happen within the private domain; we also need all the relevant public domain stakeholders as well. International trade bodies and governments need to work to streamline and harmonise regulations, standards and procedures across countries and continents to facilitate smoother and more efficient cross-border trade.

Enhanced cooperation between customs administrations is recommended to streamline clearance processes and reduce bottlenecks, as these factors significantly impact cargo’s smooth handling and flow. The integration of public systems with port ecosystems, as well as the reuse and sharing of relevant data elements for optimised business processes, is pivotal and key to success.

By embracing the above strategies, port environment can leverage international collaboration to increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve the resilience of global supply chains. This collaborative approach will be crucial in navigating the complexities of an increasingly interconnected world.

What innovative strategies and technologies could the global shipping industry implement to tackle the escalating congestion crisis at major ports while also promoting sustainability and efficiency?

Addressing port congestion while at the same time promoting sustainability and efficiency is not an easy task; it is a difficult puzzle to solve and a tricky balance to keep. There is no single golden bullet, but it requires a multifaceted approach and a combination of innovative thinking and strategy, again using technology and intelligent community systems to leverage these combined solutions.

Establishing partnerships with inland and dry ports can help to decongest the busy seaports by shifting certain operations away from the more crowded coastal areas.

Of course, this needs to come with intelligent coordination of the cargo flows from the seaports towards the hinterland and vice versa. Transparency and visibility through technology are essential, a combination of smart data sharing systems or PCSs extended with the use of IoT devices to track cargo and modes of transport, with data analytics and the use of AI to plan and predict the most efficient cargo operations from and to the seaport.

An initiative that has gained quite some traction and which could be impactful, depending on the specific case and location of certain ports, is the innovative Just-in-Time (JIT) Arrival concept.

Integrating this concept in an intelligent way within more advanced vessel traffic management systems can improve berth allocation and reduce waiting times in ports. Supplementary and ideally, these VTMSs need to be ””assisted”” by collaborative decision-making platforms to create the most efficient planning and scheduling for a vessel to arrive in a port, as many port service stakeholders are involved in a port call – pilots, tugboats, dockers, and all of them need to be coordinated punctually to avoid port congestion.

When we look at this process of solving port congestion from a technological point of view, all pieces of the puzzle need to fall together, and there is nowhere only one system or stakeholder responsible or able to solve the issue.

The VTMS of the port authority, the TOS of the terminal operator, and the real-time monitoring with visibility through a Port Community System all need a collaborative approach and a community mindset to work together, not only the human factor in charge of the physical flow of the cargo but also the technological systems in place need to talk to each other in a harmonised way and the same semantic language.

This doesn’t come all by itself; it takes time. However, above all, the most important thing here is to set individual public and private interests and benefits aside and to think and react as a community. That is a prerequisite to succeed.

How do you envision public-private partnerships transforming the terrain of port infrastructure development in the coming years, and what innovative strategies could emerge from such collaborations?

Public-private partnerships (PPPs) have the potential to significantly transform port infrastructure development by leveraging the strengths of both sectors.

When we only look at the financial aspects, it is good to have regions, countries and agencies that initiate public funding. However, PPPs also have the ability to attract private investment, providing the necessary capital for large-scale infrastructure projects that might be beyond the reach of public funding alone.

Also, sharing risks in this kind of partnership can make PPP projects more viable and sustainable, and there will be a higher urge for deliverables and concrete outcomes when private companies or investments are involved.

But when it comes to innovation and transformative capabilities by means of technology, it is not only about money. One of the most crucial aspects of digital innovation when looking at PPPs is how to find mutual benefits for both sides. In several ports, there are numerous examples where the public (port) authorities can offer their physical infrastructure or assets to private companies, who, in turn, have the disposal of innovative but proven technology and expertise but may not always understand the complex landscape of the different port, transport and supply chain processes.

This unique combination applied in port ecosystems generates innovative solutions to improve port operations, not only when it comes to the specific cargo flows but also in the level of safety and security of port environments.

We see examples of such PPPs where technology is transforming port development in the deployment of self-servicing, autonomous drone implementations both in air and at sea, autonomous sailing operated from a distant traffic control centre (commercial barge operations in Belgium and The Netherlands), and many others.

The unique concept of such PPPs from a port perspective where you look outside to bring in new emerging technologies to transform your daily port operations and, at the same time, also have an inside-out look to create an innovation culture in your organisation where people start to think in a more digital native way based on technology is a most valuable process for an organisation.

Again, you need some ‘giants to lead the way here. Due to the rapidly evolving technology, in the end, all ports will need to move more quickly than they do today. But of course, each of them needs to move at their own pace and according to its own capabilities.

As technology is everywhere these days, the focus domains of each port can be different, whether it be safety, security, or energy transition; the most important thing is to have a strategy before you start your innovation journey.

But in the end, we will all need to collaborate and work together. A good example here is that recently, the two biggest ports in Europe – Rotterdam in the Netherlands and Antwerp-Bruges in Belgium – announced a cross-border collaboration in the field of their energy transition, where both invest and are forerunners in producing renewable energy in their port areas and are looking intensively in the transition towards alternative fuels (hydrogen, methanol,). This is a wonderful example of how cargo competitors can work together to reduce CO² towards a more sustainable future.

By embracing examples like this, public and public-private partnerships can drive significant advancements in port infrastructure, making ports more efficient, sustainable, and resilient towards the future.

This collaborative approach will be crucial in meeting global trade demands and ensuring port operations’ long-term sports success.

What innovative technologies can be deployed to enhance Europe’s ports’ security and operational resilience against evolving threats?

In today’s volatile geopolitical and macro-economic situation, ports are critical environments that need to establish all necessary measures to safeguard and ensure smooth global trade.

In most European countries, the port environments are already considered the so-called critical infrastructure of a country, for which, for several years, a European directive has been in place that forces ports to establish a (cyber)security framework to protect their systems in use.

Of course, threats not only come through cyberattacks, but ports also need to secure their port area against outside infiltrations.

To enhance the security and operational resilience of Europe’s ports against evolving threats, numerous ports have invested huge amounts over the years in advanced monitoring and early warning systems through the implementation of a wide range of IoT devices, smart sensors and smart cameras to detect potential threats as early as possible.

Also, the use of AI and machine learning algorithms and data analytics tools support ports in securing the physical environment of the port area by detecting anomalies.

More and more, although in this stage mainly at the bigger ports in Europe, you also see extensive implementations of multi-drone configurations, where a port area is equipped with several autonomous BVLOS drones for aerial surveillance flights.

Access control procedures for every individual entering the port area are gradually finding their way to almost every port in Europe nowadays due to facing threads and the current climate of terrorism and (cyber)crime.

The way of access control implementation differs here and there, but also here, you see innovative technologies popping up, with systems integrating biometric identification and facial recognition to pick up or deliver a container to a port terminal.

Although the reason and background of this kind of implementation are due to increased threats, the opportunity taken from proven technology to implement this in daily port processes is truly a positive evolution to ensure that only authorised personnel are able to enter sensitive and critical areas.

However, technology is not the only solution here, as in the world of security and the current climate of cyber threats, the human factor is the weakest link.

Ports not only need to rely on technology and intelligently implemented systems to protect them from outside danger.

That means that a continuous awareness program towards port employees is necessary to make them aware and bring their attention to always be alert and proactive regarding security and possible threats. There is no need to say that it is a no-brainer that every port needs to have an awareness program in place for their staff to ensure a coordinated and effective response to security alerts at the time it is needed (but hopefully, they never need it!).