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Four experts \u2013 Hanane Becha<\/a><\/span> from TRAXENS, Mikael Lind<\/a><\/span> from the Research Institutes of Sweden, MSC\u2019s Andr\u00e9 Simha<\/a><\/span> and CMA CGM\u2019s Francois Bottin<\/a> <\/span>\u2013 write today on how ports are changing.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ports are taking significant strides with digital transformation and starting to declare themselves as \u201csmart\u201d. Processes are digitalised, communities within the port are connected, and impressive gains in operational efficiency, regulatory compliance, and customer satisfaction are emerging. Smart ports, as important nodes in the global supply chain, have the opportunity to establish themselves as logistics information exchange hubs serving their regional transport ecosystem. As ports digitalise their processes, they also establish a platform for providing benefits to other participants in the cargo, freight, and passenger ecosystems. In a society where bandwidth and connectivity are growing, more data will be generated along with new services and many new opportunities. A landscape of new revenue-generating information services enabling carriers, shippers, and other players to significantly improve their operational predictability, efficiency, visibility, and capacity utilisation is now opening.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Data-powered operational gains<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Ports and supply chains involve thousands of independent companies and individuals depending on each other\u2019s policies, plans, and actions to effectively make the right business decisions and run operations. The smart port uses digital data streams to boost collaboration, align activities, and make decisions that improve vital processes across their operations.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Some of the trends that we see now are:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n These developments provide examples of how a port and its actors become a significant data source for a multitude of parameters that support both an environmentally sustainable and value creating transport system.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A port\u2019s value creation needs to capitalize on data for optimal performance<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n A port is a self-organized ecosystem within the larger self-organized ecosystem of the global shipping industry. Both depend on distributed collaboration and coordination. A port is in a system of engagement for the coordination and collaboration among its various actors. This means that each actor\u2019s operations are dependent on their capability to utilize the necessary blend of data from others within the port to optimize operations. Each actor in a port needs to contribute to and access up-to-date situational awareness to achieve a collective and mutually beneficial level of efficiency. A port is also a series of systems of production as its various actors each conduct routine operations for ships, passengers, and cargo handling. The efficiency of these system of production is critical to a port\u2019s success.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n