OPTIMISING TERMINAL OPERATIONS
WHO DARES WINS In its own right or in a ‘joined up way” modern technology holds the power to enhance key front-line and back-up terminal activities. Felicity Landon highlights current initiatives
8 Projects undertaken by Trent Ports Group include the introduction of a highly focused asset management programme for a Middle East based terminal operator
Sometimes, in order to add value, you must first disrupt. This was the opening message from Jon Arnup, founder of the Singapore-based Trent Ports Group, as he led the presentations at a webinar focusing on “Unleashing the potential of innovative solutions and advanced AI driven technologies”. The headline name for the Transport Events webinar was actually “Who Dares Wins” – and in the current digitalisation frenzy, it would be easy to imagine ports rushing to digitalise anything that moves in order to leave competitors in their wake. However, there were comforting words of caution from Arnup. “The digital transformation that we strive for must be phased in its delivery, or able to be phased, be aligned with cost and the revenue profile of each terminal and be aligned to the risk appetite of a port,” he said. Five partners that have teamed up with each other to deliver end-to-end solutions for ports in AI, technology and digital solutions – Trent, Jacobs, IGO Solutions, Aidrivers and Remy InfoSource – each presented new innovations at the webinar. While some ports “have embraced the Who Dares Wins with some success”, said Arnup, “we understand that big bang is not a reality for many ports today and we believe that that is preventing some terminals from taking those early steps towards a joined-up holistic digital autonomous transformation. It is important that we see the strategic business goals and vision of your terminal and carefully align with those.” He outlined two specific solutions – Trent Moscord, described as ‘the Amazon of ports’, and Multistaka, a highrise container concept. Trent Moscord is a dedicated spare parts catalogue “for each and every crane, piece of equipment, type, model, in your terminal”, said Arnup. The system provides the purchaser with three live quotes and enables 90 per cent faster procurement cycles which
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mean “you can do more with less, it eliminates delivery errors and there is no more guesswork when identifying a spare part, he said. “Also, there is increased visibility, and competition is driving down prices where needed.” He predicted increased negotiating power as more terminals join the platform and said terminals could save hundreds of thousands of dollars as a result. INTEGRATING SOLUTIONS Aldo Ferrufino, Port Solutions Director at Jacobs in the UAE, discussed the challenge of integrating solutions. As far as the concept of the ‘big bang’ was concerned, terminal operators’ key concerns were the cost and understanding what they have to do with all the digital elements, he stated. “The market is flooded with fragmented standalone offerings where in themselves each one has its own merit – but how do you pull all that together to make sure you are squeezing the actual value they have?” Ever-changing conditions call for solutions that are flexible and adaptable, and the market needs focus on business and technical solutions that are sustainable, resilient and adaptable, he added. There is also an increased need for customisation. He explained the five partners’ involvement in end-to-end (E2E) Solutions, to integrate port technology and develop solutions, whether for a new development or expansion of operations, with solutions grouped into three areas – business, intelligent port, and technical. Traditionally people look at masterplans as a civil engineering exercise but that is not correct, he said. “By harnessing and utilising digital twins and, for example, the projections of operations, we can work out a masterplan which is aligned with your actual business needs, not aligned with the civil engineering of it.”
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