Advancements in Port Automation and Supply Chain Efficiency

As technological advancements make their way throughout the supply chain, automation is being lauded for its transformative potential at key junctures. Ports represent an especially important component of the supply chain, as the places that serve as literal links connecting global enterprise and logistics functions. Technological and manufacturing advancements have long held relevance to port development and improvement, with none being more obvious than the containerization revolution that began in the mid-twentieth century. The rapid proliferation of shipping containers and their accompanying infrastructural components, such as enhanced ship-to-shore cranes and new container vessels, paved the way for the most efficient and productive global trade the world had ever seen. It also raised serious questions about labor, with dockworkers’ roles diminished in the more routinized and methodical container shipping process, and less time required to load and unload ships. Gone were the days of loose barrels and sacks stored in what today would be viewed as a clumsy fashion about cargo holds, and also gone were the multiple days ships spent at anchor at each port. Automation raises similar questions about the future of labor at ports, and may require a similar bridging of gaps to ensure that the necessary automation of the future does not come at the expense of many jobs.

Unloading and Storage

The potential for automation can be seen across the various functions of a port. The first step in the unloading process offers a particularly useful glimpse into the ways automation can enhance productivity without substantial job loss. Ship-to-shore cranes used to be manned directly on-site, with the crane operator driving the crane from a cab on the crane itself. Now, automation technologies have made remote crane operation possible, and many automated and semi-automated terminals around the world are already utilizing this ability. Crane operators can keep their jobs while also improving their working conditions, manning the cranes from a remote control center in an office at the port rather than braving the elements some fifteen stories high. This reduces the possibility of a workplace accident, beneficial for the companies running the port and the workers keeping things moving, and improves productivity. Reducing the dangers workers face is a key benefit of automation especially in the context of ports, which are notoriously among the most hazardous workplaces in the entire supply chain.

Once the containers are unloaded, they can be transported to storage yards using new self-driving technologies. Automated guiding vehicles and automated lifting vehicles offer a greater range of motion than traditional trucks, and allow for more efficient routing through the often congested lanes of a port. Capable of carrying and storing containers of varying sizes, from 20 to 45 feet, and using computer-guided sequencing to maximize efficiency, the potential of these vehicles is very intriguing. Some even have their own automated battery monitoring and replacement systems, helping to reduce time spent in charging bays.

Gantry cranes, in both rail-mounted and rubber-tired versions, have shown promise in becoming fully automated. Some gantry variations are showing applicability even beyond the storage yard, with palletizing and depalletizing capabilities that could prove useful at distribution centers further downstream, where the containers processed at ports are finally unpacked.

Implementing Non-Port-Specific Automation

Automation technologies already familiar to the product tracking and trucking industries hold great value at ports as well. RFID systems are already in use across the supply chain to keep track of products and ensure delivery estimates are constantly up to date. At port gates, where containers are transported out from the port via trucks or rail, these systems can help to expedite the gate-checking processes and keep companies and carriers alike well informed. Optical character recognition systems can be used to a similar effect, all in the name of improving processing efficiency and getting products moving on the road faster than before.

Other technologies less specific to ports and the tasks entailed in dock working are expected to prove useful in port automation as well. Drone implementation should help improve port security, allowing for comprehensive visibility throughout port operations and the maintenance of a secure perimeter. Potential red flags or aberrations can be quickly investigated by drone surveillance technologies and help provide initial findings. IoT can make port operations as a whole run more smoothly and efficiently than ever before, by allowing the newly implemented automation and tracking technologies across the port to communicate in the same ecosystem. This ability to improve integration will be vital to systems efficiency. Similarly, machine learning and AI software programs can help analyze port operations and suggest improvements to enhance efficiency. Many of the technologies discussed also offer environmental benefits, as overall improvements in efficiency are likely to result in fewer emissions produced, and the switch to battery-powered automated guiding vehicles and automated lifting vehicles will help ports consume fewer fossil fuels.

The questions surrounding the role labor will play at ports as automation technologies become further integrated are unlikely to go away anytime soon. However, concerns that automation will entirely replace labor in the near future seem overstated, as automation technologies have already shown the capability to shift existing jobs at ports into better, safer working conditions. A continued collaboration between labor and automation should result in improved efficiency at ports around the world.

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