Port Xchange, a growth of the Port of Rotterdam Authority, allows delivery firms to keep an eye on, evaluate, as well as maximize their container ships showing up as well as leaving from ports. ONE carried out a two-month test of the device in 2019.
Insight as well as openness
‘The Port of Rotterdam Authority came to our office in London to present PortXchange,’ states Keith Bamber, Port Operations Manager at ONE in London, where vessel preparation for Europe occurs. ‘We were impressed by the broad application and the large amount of information that this tool offers as it could provide us with more transparency than we had in the past. That is why we decided to conduct a trial. The better we can manage our vessels in the port of Rotterdam, the more accurate our planning and the more reliable our sailing schedules.’
Just- in-time
ONE has some 350 telephone calls annually to Rotterdam, which implies that around one ONE vessel each day phones call to the port ofRotterdam It is very important for the delivery firm that the vessels get here in Rotterdam just-in-time.
Image Credits: portofrotterdam.com
It sets you back a great deal of cash to secure a vessel due to the fact that, for instance, there is no room in the incurable yet to obtain the ship. Bamber: ‘It is difficult to manage this efficiently, but thanks to our good contacts with ECT in Rotterdam, this already went very smoothly during the week. Across the weekend, we often had insufficient information to enable us to respond adequately to changes in the schedule. Now we automatically receive a message about changes via PortXchange. Our operators can therefore contact the terminal directly on Saturdays and Sundays to check whether the information is correct and adjust the arrival time. If a vessel is already en route to Rotterdam, we will request the captain to adjust the speed. This saves fuel costs and is good for the environment.’
Looking in advance
During the test, the Port of Rotterdam Authority changed the Port Xchange interface on numerous factors at ONE’s demand. ‘We wanted a timeline with the real-time sailing speed, but also the required sailing speed for timely mooring at the terminal. Thanks to the good cooperation between the Port Authority’ s Port Xchange group as well as the ONE drivers in London as well as Rotterdam, this demand might be approved swiftly. The ONE vessel coordinators at first needed to obtain made use of to Port Xchange as well as acquire self-confidence that the details the device provides represents truth. Once that action was taken, they swiftly profited of collaborating with Port Xchange. ‘They can now manage their schedules much better and plan further ahead. Captains can adjust sailing speeds more flexibly.’
More details preferred
ONE will certainly proceed utilizing Port Xchange in the port of Rotterdam complying with the pilot as well as would certainly additionally such as to utilize the device in various other primary European ports, consisting of London Gateway as well as the southerly Spanish port ofAlgeciras Bamber thinks that this would certainly even more raise effectiveness. Approximately twelve individuals are presently collaborating with the system at the ONE workplaces in London as well asRotterdam ‘A nice, user-friendly solution’, Bamber sums up. ‘What we would also like to see in PortXchange is information about the tides. When loaded, our vessels from Asia have a draft of up to 16 meters. Even in very deep ports like Rotterdam, we remain dependent on the water levels. Information about this in PortXchange would be a useful addition.’
Reference: portofrotterdam.com
