TIC 4.0 – Member Interview Series: Harry Nguyen, CEO of Realtime Business Solutions Pty. Ltd

| PORT LOGISTICS EXPERTS

1. What do you think is the current status of standardization in the container terminal industry, what are the points not addressed yet?

Process, operation, and information standardization are still in their earlier stages within our industry. These circumstances reveal the current port landscape of operation methods becoming complicated due to fine-tuning to meet their unique objectives. Therefore, developing a standard language to become applicable for all customers pose a challenge for equipment and software manufacturers. Furthermore, it is more difficult for customers to innovate and expand their technology capabilities in the future without encountering any potential system integration issues or incurring fees due to high system customization requirements and constantly “re-inventing” interfaces. As a result, standardization will fortify communication and collaboration between customer and solution provider by driving synchronized understanding in information data exchange, evolving the global supply chain.

With concerted efforts in establishing a common set of standards to facilitate advancements in all aspects technologically and operationally, TIC 4.0 and iTerminals have already contributed significant strides in closing the existing gap between where we want to be and where we are currently. By addressing prevalent issues within the industry and promoting high collaboration amongst all peers, establishing an agreed methodology and language to communicate develops a strong foundation that readily accepts technological advancements.

2. From your point of view, why are standards important moving forward in the 4th industrial revolution and IoT?

In a world constant of rapid technological advancements, achieving standardization is crucial to maintaining consistency in operations and performance. Reinforcing a common language and methodology protects operational performance from information and communication discrepancies. IT infrastructures prevalent vary according to several factors that span from size to software and equipment provider, allowing boundless approaches to implement. Without standardization, these IT infrastructures vary too much that it can create incompatibility between systems, and hence, IoT or any technologies in that matter are not supported or implementation is costly and time consuming.

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What are Container Terminals?

| PORT LOGISTICS EXPERTS

container-terminals-fundamental-terminsContainer Terminals – overview of fundamentally terms

During a training session about the simulation tool CHESSCON for the Indonesian university “Shipbuilding Institute of Polytechnic Surabaya” Prof. Dr. Ing. Holger Schütt held a presentation about container terminal operation in general. It is based on his lessons at the University of Applied Sciences Bremerhaven.

He explained fundamentally terms as quay side, horizontal transport and hinterland as well as some innovations like blok beam or the container ropeway. Besides that, he gives an overview about typical processes and the various equipment types at the terminal. To visualize the topics, he uses photos from his visits to terminals all over the world (e.g. Shanghai, Busan, Jebel Ali, Tacoma, Long Beach, Durban and others).

Easy to understand and vividly presented.

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TIC4.0 – Interview series: Mark Wootton, CIO Yilport Holding about standardization in the container terminal industry

| PORT LOGISTICS EXPERTS

1. What do you think is the current status of standardization in the container terminal industry, what are the points not addressed yet?

A lot of work has been done in the standardization of message flows between industry participants, mainly terminal operators, shipping lines and customs authorities. Although the underlying technologies may need to be updated (or are being updated) from traditional EDI to webservices, the format and exchange of data is quite mature. Where the focus is currently is to bring this level of maturity to the exchange of data between equipment/machines and operational and planning systems.

2. From your point of view, why are standards important moving forward in the 4th industrial revolution and IoT?

In order not to have to build from scratch the interfaces between sensors and equipment and operational systems, these standards should be developed and adopted by the industry. The effort to develop these on a per project basis make this a costly and time-consuming exercise which slows down the adoption of technology into the industry which will improve safety as well as efficiency.

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Digital port as base for big pictures

| PORT LOGISTICS EXPERTS

Prof. Dr. Holger. Schütt speaks in the online interview about the digitalisation as a base for big pictures which will allow you to revolutionise your port processes. He explains why digitalisation is an ongoing process!

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a view at your container terminal like if you look out of the window? A 3D-view of your terminal is not just a game, it is a vital opportunity to vividly improve your port economics.

Enjoy the interview from Black Sea Ports & Shipping Conference 2020 in Instanbul (postponed to 2021) about digital port opportunities.

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We asked Luisa Kempf, Chief Technology Officer of EUROGATE Technical Services: Why join TIC?

| PORT LOGISTICS EXPERTS

1. What do you think is the current status of standardization in the container terminal industry, what are the points not addressed yet?

Standardization in the container terminal industry is on a very low level. Especially looking at the details: the variety of terminology and range of definition is very big. Even in one terminal the position of the same technical item is identified in a different way, depending on the vendor. I just saw this with identifying the exact position of a wheel with regards to the container handling equipment. Even in a traditional (non-digitised) world – imagine the amount of misunderstandings that are being caused by this lack of standards. Digitising a process and making sense out of the data based on this foundation is almost impossible!

For the industry, being on such a low level is good news in two ways: there is a big potential for improvement and there are a lot of low hanging fruits. Both means that the positive effects of standardization will become visible, which is a huge motivation for all involved parties.

2. From your point of view, why are standards important moving forward in the 4th industrial revolution and IoT?

Standards are important to minimize the cost of moving forward in the 4th industrial revolution. The cost of implementation in a standardized environment will be lower compared to the current situation, because items can be identified in an unambiguous way and the interpretation of signals and messages is clear.

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