1. The document discusses visually modeling ports and terminals to help managers understand complex systems and make decisions. 2. It provides a simple model of a port as a "gate valve" to regulate cargo flow between land and sea transport. 3. A real port is more complex with factors like equipment, weather, regulations affecting throughput across three subsystems: the quay, yard, and gate/rail areas.

1. ports & terminals
Visually modelling
a port
Captain Hossein.J.Kamali
R
ecently I attended the ECA ses- mangers, but transferring the idea in smooth and efficient operation of mar-
sion hosted by the Chamber of an understandable and interesting way ine terminals and utilize appropriate
Shipping of British Columbia. is another matter which I shall try to models in supporting their decisions.
During the session, one could recognize accomplish in this short article. As within any operation, representa-
that among the many questions, there The modelling approach in decision- tion of the system plays a crucial role in
was one that was outstanding: what making and design aspects of marine management. Representation can vis-
will happen to the local marine indus- ports has gained greater attention as ually show how independent compon-
try after enforcement of the Emission managers face a problem area that is ents work and interact. It is important
Control Area? very dynamic in nature. Researchers to define the boundaries of the system
Further to this, I have also followed have proposed different software pack- and it’s behavior which involves inputs,
some of Port Metro Vancouver’s pres- ages and approaches in simulating and processing and outputs.
entations during the past year, once modelling port operations for varying Following illustrates a simple step
again the big question sounds like: purposes. by step modelling of a port in a linear
“should the economy change, one way format which is understandable for
or another, what will be the outcome As within any operation, representation non-experts.
for the local ports?” It should be noted that flow of cargo
of the system plays a crucial role in
The source of these kinds of ques- is not the only source of income for
tions is in fact the human mind’s management. ports, they charge their customers for
tendency for constructing a business
model and connecting all known exter- Marine ports are the interfaces be-
nal and internal sensors, components tween two modes of transport — land
and stimulants to see the effect on the and water. Ports are industrial areas
output, and based upon that output, that are home to the interchanging of
make a decision for future moves. cargo, information and funds among
Visualizing the dynamic models of a different parties such as shippers, car-
marine port had been part of my past riers, insurance companies, customs,
job and designation as an instructor banks and stevedores.
and member of a maritime training in- Ports vary significantly in terms of
stitute, port and logistics faculty group. size, type of operation, location, man-
I shall emphasize that all of these agement, type of equipment, layout and
dynamic models already exist in many other aspects. Port managers are Figure 1. — Gate valve representation of
the minds of CEOs and operational aware of different factors affecting the a simple port system.
32 BC Shipping News April 2012

2. ports & terminals
equipment, workers/unions, weather,
drafts, market, local legislation and
others. The flow is not restricted by
any single valve but by a series of
valves, which holistically determine the
throughput.
Thus the above simple system can be
used as a single building block which
can be anywhere from fully closed,
slightly open or fully open.
Marine Port Subsystems
Marine ports are composed of three
major subsystems as illustrated in
Figure 2: Quay (Berth); Yard; and Gate
and rail-head.
Quay
Quay is where the physical transfer of
goods from ship to shore and vice versa
takes place. Throughput governing ele-
ments include:
• Quay equipments such as cranes, con-
veyer belt and pipes which transfer
goods from ship to shore and vice
versa
Figure 2. — Three major subsystems of marine ports. • Berth’s length and depth which de-
cides the number and size of ships
a number of dues and services. No sys- However, a real port system is far that can be berthed simultaneously
tem is truly linear and no man-made more complex. Cargo movement can be • Security level which is a measure to
model can suffice for decision-making in both directions (import & export) enhance the security of ship and port
but should be viewed as a tool for an- and there are many other elements facilities
alysis and consideration. Visual rep- which can restrict the rate of through- • Berth’s traffic and labour staffing at
resentation is easier to interpret than put, such as quay cranes, quay transfer any given time
straight text.
A simple way of representing a port
system is to identify a “gate valve”, also
known as a “sluice valve”, which operates
by lifting a gate/wedge out of the path of
the fluid, Figure 1. The fluid is the cargo;
the inlet and outlet of the valve are the
land and water transportation activ-
ities. The reservoir behind the gate valve
represents the storage yard and the gate
is an internal element affecting the
throughput of the port. When we com-
bine the valve with a reservoir a simple
cargo terminal is formed.
This type of schematic diagram is
standard for the logistics of many busi-
nesses, with raw material as input,
inventory being kept in storage and
product as output. In this simple model
the gate is playing an important role, it
restricts the flow of cargo and regulates
Figure 3. — Subsystems interacting with throughput of the port.
the rate of throughput.
April 2012 BC Shipping News 33

3. ports & terminals
Yard It should not be assumed that any limitation encourages cargo work at an-
Yard is where inventory is kept. It’s gate valve in the above model works in- chor (lighterage).
throughput is governed by: dependently. Although complete clos- The diagram evolves to Figure 4. by
• Material handling equipment ure of a single valve along the pipeline showing interrelationships between
• Current capacity stops the entire throughput, their vari- building blocks as red arrows.
• Wharfage ance is not independent but is continu- To avoid excessive visual complexity,
• Complexity of the documentation ously under the influence of the other only basic interrelationships have been
process components, passively and/or actively. shown.
Gate and rail-head For example, a berth’s depth is pas-
Gate and rail-head are where the sively under influence of the approach- Challenges facing ports are not only re-
goods are cleared in/out by the Cus- ing canal. It would be redundant to
dredge a berth more than draft limita- lated to the periodic economic cycles...
toms department and connection is
established with land transportation tion of the approach passage. Elements but also to the changes in the structure
by interchanging the goods with land such as labour force, ports equipment,
vehicles. type of vessels to service and berth & organization of the industry.
The diagram in Figure 2. is similar to traffic volumes and patterns, actively
a pipeline where subsystems determine affect each other in a multilateral way. We may conclude that ports are stra-
the capacity of the whole; the system The same applies for international tegically located in the supply chain as
throughput rate is determined by the trade, regional trade, national legisla- an interface in the flow of goods and
least open gate valve. tion, ocean carriers and rival ports. act as a platform for the exchange of
There are more closely interrelated Limitation of a port’s storage cap- information. As a key link within the
systems and players within the logistics acity encourages the use of off-dock supply chain, ports have to co-operate
chain of the marine industry that affect terminals, which in turn is affected by with shipping agents, forwarders, off-
the throughput of the port, including the multimodal transport and custom dock terminals, ocean carriers, port
multimodal transportation, rival ports, regulations. authorities, shippers, rail/road/feed-
off-dock terminals, lighterage at an- National legislation such as the er operators, truckers, governments
chor and ocean carriers as shown in Emission Control Area which urges the and administrative services such as
Figure 3. use of more expensive fuel by ocean car- Customs.
The main core of the port itself is at- riers can affect the pattern of their port Challenges facing ports are not only
tached to land transportation from one rotation in favour of or against rival related to the periodic economic cycles
side and approaching sea passage on ports. Poor quay equipment would re- and fluctuations but also to the chan-
the other side. quire ships with mounted cranes. Depth ges in the structure and organization
of the industry. Ports must be adapt-
able to these changes and become more
involved in the integration of supply
chains by changing their traditional
fragmented approach into an integrat-
ed system within which new roles and
relationships with other players are
defined.
A holistic dynamic model can help
tackle the numerous issues ports face
and can save considerable time and
money in design and decisions which
otherwise may lead to sunk costs.
Captain Hossein J. Kamali is an
accomplished Master Mariner with exten-
sive international training and work ex-
perience in ocean-going vessels, shipping,
logistics, port operations and container
management. He has authored several
books on these subjects. Captain Kamali
Figure 4. — The interrelationships show the evolution of the supply chain. can be reached at h.kamali@shaw.ca.
34 BC Shipping News April 2012