CASE STUDY
We caught up with Harm van Weezel , Chief Information Officer at Associated British Ports , to glean further insight into the collaboration and its benefits .
Can you tell us about your role at the company and what this looks like day-to-day ?
I was appointed as ABP ’ s inaugural Chief Information Officer at ABP in February 2019 . The key function I carry out in my role is leading the company ’ s Digital Transformation . Day-to-day , I oversee our strategy to harness the latest technologies to improve ABP ’ s operational efficiency , increase productivity , accuracy and safety for our ports and our customers . This includes everything from drone trials to situational awareness tools , the Internet-of-Things and AI . We want to ensure our IT capabilities and solutions continue to support the business ’ changing needs and deliver the best possible service to our customers .
How impactful is technology in the maritime industry and how does it accelerate operations ?
Technology solutions are critical for maritime to address inefficiencies across the entire supply chain – from fuel consumption to port arrival times and cutting carbon emissions . From a ports-specific perspective , the growing demand for increased capacity and spike in freight traffic means ports must constantly be improving operations and innovating to keep up . Data and emerging tech such as AI , robotics and automation can help monitor vessels to keep port congestion down , conserve fuel and improve safety during port operations .
Can you tell us more about your goals and ambitions and what you set out to achieve prior to the commencement of your collaboration with Wärtsilä Voyage ?
Our five-year digitalisation roadmap covers all 21 of the ABP ports and the goal is to digitise our ports , optimise our port calls and operations and improve the tracking of vessels . Our vision is to create modern , digital ports that are as efficient , sustainable and safe as possible and we identified that the partnership with Wärtsilä Voyage would enable us to meet these goals and ambitions .
How do Wärtsilä ’ s solutions ensure you are ahead of the curve in terms of supply chain modernisation ?
ABP ’ s network of 21 ports are key gateways for international trade so it is critical that we are ahead of the curve to help drive UK prosperity and ensure the smooth running of the global supply chain . The partnership with Wärtsilä gives us access to high-quality data that can be used to inform and enhance decision-making in our ports . This data can also be shared with other stakeholders in the supply chain to ensure smoother operations and facilitate Just-in-Time arrivals , whereby vessels adjust their operating speed and route to coincide their arrival with the port ’ s handling operations .
How has Wärtsilä Voyage helped to accelerate your Digital Transformation journey – can you provide some specific examples ?
With the real-time data from Wärtsilä ’ s port management information system , we can know if a vessel will be delayed for whatever reason – be that the weather or operations . We can tell them to slow down to ensure they arrive at the optimal time when the necessary port facilities and services are available and share that information with the many different stakeholders in the whole end-to-end supply chain . The vessel can conserve fuel and will arrive just in time to reduce waiting and the transportation companies picking up cargo are also kept well-informed of any delays and can adjust their arrival times accordingly . That ’ s a great example of how Wärtsilä ’ s solutions will help us modernise ports and make improvements from a customer satisfaction , sustainability and cost benefit standpoint .
How smooth and seamless has the project been so far and how do you expect this will continue ?
The project began in June of this year and will span multiple phases across the five-year framework agreement . We started with the Port of Southampton , integrating Wärtsilä ’ s Vessel Traffic Services system and Port Management Information System first , which is expected to be completed before April 2023 . We ’ re making great progress and will soon begin to deploy the other solutions across our other ports .
What advice would you give to an organisation within the maritime industry starting out on a journey like yours ?
There can sometimes be resistance in the maritime industry to embrace new technologies – especially when it comes to data sharing , as many believe this puts competitors or counterparties at an advantage . Instead , my advice would be to see emerging technologies as a great enabler to streamline processes , achieve sustainability aims and ultimately provide better services throughout the industry . p
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