Technology Never Creates Unemployment
In the recent years, the process of digitalization has received a lot of attention. Some of large shipping companies have taken big steps in this regard. In order to collect more on this significant issue, MANA Correspondent conducted an exclusive interview with Marco Politi. He is graduated cum laude in Electronic Engineering and Telecommunications and have a 30 years long experience in management roles in different companies.
He represents DBA Group which is an independent group of companies providing technical and management support services as well as products, in the fields of Architecture, Engineering, Project & Lifecycle Management and Information & Communication Technologies DBA Group among others, provides software solutions for the management of all the operational processes inside Ports. In particular, Port-Line our Port Management Information System, is a web based platform to automate information exchanges among all stakeholders of the Port Community and manage all operational activities inside a Port. PORT-Line is a Suite that combines a range of information solutions and services that support logistic processes for water, air or land transport. It is composed of several modules each managing a specific function like the Port Community System (PCS), the Terminal Operating System (TOS).
Could you please define a Smart Port?
It would be a very long story, but in a nutshell, a Smart Port is a logistic hub where the transiting goods (containers, vehicles, general cargo) to and from the port are managed through digitalized processes. So, everything is done through the aid of software and electronically. Any message or document is not exchanged via paper, but it is exchanged by computers. The first step is digitalization of the processes, the second step is automation of some operations. By automation, some of the operations are done by automatic vehicles like AGVs, automatic cranes, handheld or vehicle mounted devices etc. rather than by human personnel. In some cases unmanned operations improve the safety on the work yard simply because there is nobody to be harmed, everything is automated. Also operations can result “greener” because a totally automated port does for example not require any illumination at night and can operate 24/7. Now, which ports are Smart Ports throughout the world? For sure, Northern Europe ports are more advanced in the automation process, since they exchange very high volumes, So, in order to become efficient, the port should be digitalized and informatized otherwise, the port will not be able to handle high quantities of goods. Rotterdam port is going to cooperate with IBM and Maersk for smart port and also making use of blockchain technology. This port exchanges 12 million TEU per year. Other big ports in Asia such as Singapore port which is exchanging 30 million TEU per year, this volume throughput would simply not be possible without a high degree of processes digitalization and automation.
What do you think about the impact of Smart Port on different sectors of shipping industry, such as Container, Bulk and Tanker?
With Smart Ports, these sector will definitely be more efficient. To create efficiency is the first driver of a Smart Port. The other driver is integration, the port cannotbe isolated from the external world. It must be integrated with other stakeholders like the shipping companies, the freight forwarder, the shipping agents, the customs agencies, the tugboat and pilots organizations etc. It is also of fundamental importance for a port to be physically and digitally integrated with the transport infrastructures like roads and railways and with corresponding other ports. In your opinion, what is the impact of Smart Port on Cyber Attack, will it increase or decrease? I expect the level of Cyber Attacks will be increased, for the simple reason that the port has to interconnect digitally with the external world; by necessity part of the IT systems will have to be exposed to the public internet, so in theory attackable. But of course also the countermeasures, the firewall and the DMZ and the anti-hacker techniques will improve correspondently.
What measures have shipping companies taken to encounter Cyber Attack?
There are several protection measures you can adopt against Cyber Attacks, you can establish firewalls and Demilitarized Zones, you can dedicate private networks to the communications inside the port, you can grant access to external users through Virtual Private Networks (VPN), you can use proper software and also procedures to protect your networks. So, there are a lot of means to protect ports from these type of attacks .
Do you think that Persian Gulf ports have the potential to be smart ports?
They have very high potential to become Smart Port for several reasons, first of all, they are not as developed as Northern European ports, the traffic of containers is projected to increase at a very high rate in the next years, so, in my opinion, now is just the proper time to start implementing Smart Ports practically. With the geographical position, the market potential, the investments from China in the One Belt One Road initiative, I personally think Iran is destined to become a major logistic hub for goods transiting on the bidirectional East-West and South-North paths, both by sea or land, so there is a potentially brilliant future in near times.
With Smart Port, do you think that the price rates of transportation will increase or decrease?
It will depend on many factors, it will depend on the politics of terminal operators, on the amount of increased traffic etc. For sure, the costs will go down, so in theory also the prices could be reduced. What is the impact of Smart Port on workforce? Of course full automation will be generating a reduction of the personnel previously involved in the operations. But full automation is only possible with container handling and there are to my knowledge only 2 or 3 Iranian ports that today handle containers in big quantities (in the range of Mn TEUs). In general cargo terminals, operations will be less automatized and technology will help people to do their same jobs in a better, quicker and safer way (e.g. using a handheld device to read and transmit data instead of using paper). Also there will be the creation of new types of jobs (e.g. IT experts, people to control the automated activities), so there will in my opinion be a shift in jobs not a reduction. Technology if properly applied creates new jobs, it never creates unemployment.
Ship owners imagine one day that they just sit at their home and book their goods through mobile, do you think that this dream will come true in near future?
This is already possible today with technology. A user can access a webportal, announcing the cargo he/she would like to ship and whereto, the shipping agent can announce the ship to the port attaching the cargo manifest, the port operators can allocate resources (people, equipment, pilots, tugboats, cranes etc.), the customs can clear the goods electronically, the transportation companies can plan their activities etc. It is just a matter to relies and implement it. Technology is there already.