My Ship s Come In. Where Is My Container? How A Well-Designed Container Tracking System Can Help a Port Authority Avoid This Question

Transcription

1 My Ship s Come In. Where Is My Container? How A Well-Designed Container Tracking System Can Help a Port Authority Avoid This Question By Jim Nicoll, IT Manager, Halifax Port Authority In conjunction with Nicom Maritime Many port authorities collect and report on key metrics associated with dwell and transit times on a daily basis. Having this information allows a port authority to ensure that its service commitments are being met. However, the data collection process requires the participation of a large number of stakeholders, and is both a manual and labour intensive practice. In order to reduce the level of effort required by the various stakeholders, a container tracking system can automatically collect the data, and prepare and distribute reports, including accurate calculations on dwell and transit times. THE HALIFAX PORT AUTHORITY, ITS BUSINESS PROBLEM AND OBJECTIVES Located on the east coast of Canada, Halifax is the country s third largest container port with operations at two terminals. One of the Halifax Port Authority s mandates is to promote trade through its waters. As a key gateway, the Port of Halifax moves a significant volume of cargo inland by rail. The Halifax Port Authority (HPA) had previously worked with its stakeholders to identify the key metrics related to the quality and consistency of its service. Two key measures identified were: dwell time the amount of time an import container sits at a marine or rail terminal before commencing its inland journey, and transit time the total elapsed time from container discharge to arrival at its inland destination. Shorter dwell times indicate that terminal and rail resources are being used effectively, and result in inbound cargo being delivered quickly. Accurate transit time metrics allow for improved logistics planning for those receiving goods. Concerned with the quality and consistency of the service it provided its customers, the HPA had a Service Standard Report to monitor these two key indicators. With over 550,000 TEU of container

2 traffic moving through the port and its terminals each year, the task of capturing data required for dwell and transit time monitoring was nearly impossible to perform manually. The Service Standard Report was developed and distributed to interested stakeholders each day. However, where the process relied on input from a large number of stakeholders, it was time-consuming and demanded complex calculations, causing frequent delays in producing the document. Valuable information was not readily available and clients often were not aware of the status of their cargo. This was the position that the Halifax Port Authority found itself in. The relatively low HPA s management team decided to take an innovative operating costs approach to gathering the information they needed to track associated with the cargo from the port to final destination. The HPA, in Container Tracking collaboration with its preferred information technology (IT) firm, System, its simplicity, and Nicom Maritime, a division of Nicom IT Solutions Inc., the benefit it brought the developed a Container Tracking System (CTS) which uses EDI HPA makes this system an and communications technology to improve data collection. attractive investment. HPA staff were reassigned to higher value customer service Jim Nicoll, Manager of activities, making better use of their time and abilities that Systems, Halifax Port normally would be devoted to the production of the Service Authority Standard Report. The CTS allows Port of Halifax customers to track import containers from vessel discharge to rail release at destination. The relatively low operating costs associated with the CTS, its simplicity, and the benefit it brought the HPA makes this system an attractive investment. BACKGROUND, OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY The CTS is based on a simple concept: collecting basic container movement data provides valuable logistics planning information to customers. While many organizations provide some level of container tracking, the CTS implementation in Halifax is unique in that it offers a single gateway for tracking import containers from vessel discharge to deramping at destination, regardless of which ship line, terminal or railway is used. Another unique feature is the ability to provide timely container dwell time monitoring available to those who are in a position to respond. Every import container going through the Port of Halifax has a number of events associated with it as it moves along its inbound journey. Each movement has dwell and transit times associated with vessel and rail transport as illustrated in Figure 1.

3 Figure 1 Events, Dwell Times and Transit Times The Container Tracking System (CTS) application was developed to support the objectives of the Service Standard Reporting initiative. To do so, the following capabilities were required: Gather import container movement data, from vessel discharge to arrival at inland rail terminal, and discharge from rail car. Determine and report patterns and trends in terminal dwell, rail dwell, and total transit times for import containers. Allow the query and display of container movement information, and related terminal dwell times, rail dwell times, and transit times. Maintain repository data for rail performance analysis, planning, and reporting. To provide these capabilities, the HPA worked with its two terminal operators, Ceres and Halterm, and with its rail service provider, CN Rail. Ceres and Halterm now provide automated data feeds to the CTS using the ANSI 322 Terminal Operations Activity EDI message. These messages are sent every three hours, and report on all containers discharged during that period. CN

4 Rail provides daily electronic feed to the CTS, reporting all movements for that day for every import container originating in Halifax using its service. The CTS accepts the EDI feeds as they arrive, and stores them into a data repository without any operator intervention. If the data import process fails to complete correctly, an operator is notified by so that remedial action may be taken. Figure 2 illustrates the system architecture of the Container Tracking System. Figure 2 CTS Service Data Flow Once the data has been captured, it can be used to monitor terminal and rail dwell, and overall transit, times for import containers moving through the Port. A number of standard report types are available, including: Vessel Discharge List - Lists all containers discharged from a specified vessel by ship line. Analysis Reports Calculate and report dwell and transit times for further analysis and comparison. Trend Reports - Calculate and report dwell times to determine patterns. Container Movement Status and History Query Perform queries on individual container numbers, browse vessel discharge lists, display last reported location and status, and provide history of movement.

5 Reports are available on-demand and can be based on a number of parameters, including date ranges, originating terminal, destination, ship line, and vessel. The CTS has the ability to automatically generate reports on a designated schedule, and to them directly to recipients. An example of a Trend Report is shown in Figure 3. Figure 3 Sample CTS Dwell Time Trend Report A web based query application allows visitors to go to the Halifax Port Authority s site to search the Container Tracking System database for the most recent status information. Choosing any container number from this list will display detailed dwell time and movement information. A sample web based results screen is shown in Figure 4.

6 Figure 4 Web Query Search Results and Status Screen HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE The Container Tracking System was developed for the HPA by its development partner, Nicom Maritime. The Container Tracking System is a.net based application written in Visual Basic.NET using the SQL Server 2000 database platform. The web-based functionality is implemented using ASP.NET 2.0, and uses cutting edge technologies to ensure a pleasant and efficient user interface. Technologies such as AJAX, Prototype and CSS are used in innovative ways to offer superior satisfaction and abilities. Communication services are provided through custom developed ftp scripts and eforward EDI transfer protocol from Corvedia Inc. PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS The Container Tracking System has enabled the Port of Halifax to provide a much higher level of customer service than was possible in the past. Since its implementation, the Port of Halifax has seen continued improvement in meeting service commitments. Average total dwell times dropped from 110 hours for the period June 1, 2005 May 31, 2006, to 69 hours for the period

7 June 1, 2006 May 31, 2007; an improvement of over 37%! Dwell times have generally also become much more consistent. While not all of this improvement can be directly attributed to the CTS, clearly having the ability to accurately measure dwell time in near real time has raised awareness of distressing issues and improved the HPA s responsiveness. The benefits of this system extend far beyond the HPA. Container dwell times directly reflect the productivity of a port and its service providers who are able to make more effective use of their resources. The American Association of Port Authorities liked this technology so much it honoured us with an award for innovation. Karen Oldfield, CEO, Halifax Port Authority The Container Tracking System has provided an immediate and direct benefit to the HPA in the form of improved staff productivity and effectiveness. The CTS has automated the collection of key operating metrics, freeing HPA staff of this onerous task. Service Standard Reports are now prepared and distributed automatically and on a timely basis. One staff member, previously dedicated to this task, is now able to focus attention on higher value customer service activities, including predictive and preventive measures. Moving toward a web-based self-serve model for container status and movement history queries has benefitted customers using the Port of Halifax. This service was deployed to enable the HPA to respond to customer requests, and is helping them, in turn, improve their own logistics planning capabilities when using the Port. The transition to a web based query system has also demonstrated to customers that the Halifax Port Authority does listen and respond to their needs when it can. TRANSFERABILITY OF THE TECHNOLOGY AND IDEA TO THE PORT INDUSTRY The Container Tracking System (CTS) developed by the Halifax Port Authority is an example of an innovative approach to tracking cargo from the harbour to its ultimate destination. Using EDI and communications technology has improved data collection, and reassigned Port staff to higher value customer service activities. The ability to easily measure and monitor dwell times has improved resource management, and since the implementation of the CTS, average total container dwell times at the Port of Halifax have been reduced by 37% and are much more consistent. The relatively low operating costs associated with the CTS, its simplicity of use, and the high level of benefit it brings, makes this system an attractive investment.

8 The concept on which the CTS is based is very simple, and the technology with which it is built is readily available and reasonably priced. From this perspective, it could easily be adopted by any port. The challenge lies in its implementation. Implementing the CTS in the Port of Halifax required the direct involvement of the two container terminal operators and the servicing rail carrier, and the indirect involvement of every ship line whose permission was required to provide import discharge container lists to the HPA. Through its cooperative initiative, the Halifax Port Authority was able to gain the participation of all parties. The CTS tool has brought benefit to all. Implementation is challenging but is within the means of any port. The benefits of the CTS are, it: provides baseline data for comparison and marketing highlights areas where improvements are needed allows improvement efforts to be evaluated focuses attention on subject area gets information to those who can act upon it allows for planning and prediction allows for quick response to changing needs facilitates information sharing and collaborative systems automation frees staff of onerous tasks For More Information In her 2008 address to the Halifax Chamber of Commerce, Halifax Port Authority CEO Karen Oldfield said the following: We were the first port in Canada to install container tracking. So we know that in 2007, HPA s on-dock dwell times the time a container sits on a terminal before it goes to its final destination were the shortest in Canada. The American Association of Port Authorities liked this technology so much it honoured us with an award for innovation. We are proud of all these advances and proud that we help other local businesses to achieve success in their fields too. At his presentation to the AAPA, HPA s Manager of Information Services & Technology, Jim Nicoll, said the following: CTS is a key tool in managing Dwell Times [which were] reduced by 37% between June 2005 and May Please contact: Pat d Entremont Nicom Maritime pat@nicommaritime.com