Improving the competitiveness of enterprises through building of Port Community Systems
Ports are now the critical nodes of global supply chains, providing services related to intermodal transport system. Dynamic development of transport and logistics operations affects the increase in the number of economic activities related to ports and changes the rules and ways of competition between them. It is based mainly on increasing the quality and reducing the cost of services provided by the operators of the supply chain, including port operators. Due to the ever-increasing complexity of relationships between providers of port services, traditional methods of competition, focusing on investment in infrastructure and transport means, do not bring the expected benefits. In this situation, it is necessary that the ports were systems that provide efficient exchange of information between their elements. It is also important perceiving sources of competitive advantages in innovative telecommunication and information technologies to ensure greater efficiency of port’s logistics. Particularly convenient solution in this area is the “single window service”, that allows providing the requested information only once to a single point.
The most popular solutions of this kind are “Port Community Systems” (PCS). They are electronic platforms that combine informatics systems of many public and private organizations, which together form a community of the port. Through the intelligent exchange of information via the PCS processes within and between transport and logistics chains become smoother, safer, and duplication of data entry is greatly reduced, resulting in increased efficiency of the port. In addition, PCS users can significantly reduce the amount of work on paper, to better control access to the information, reduce delays of shipments, increase the efficiency of freight movement across international borders, and to facilitate the management of port infrastructure. Such systems can be used in various port complexes, such as inland ports, airports, dry ports, etc., and can be combined to form a single infrastructure at local, national or international level. They are intensively developed under a different name in many countries around the world and in all European Union Member States, in accordance with the directives and policies of the European Commission.
Currently, there is an urgent need to remove negligence in the development of computerization of transport and logistics in Poland. Construction of PCS systems will help to improve the functioning of existing and new, constantly arriving port complexes, raising the country’s economic competitiveness internationally. There are many external and domestic circumstances favorable to this project. These include EU funding received by Poland for the period 2015-2020, the European Commission’s policy that supports the integration of transport and logistics in Europe, the policy of the Polish Government, by supporting the development of digitization and innovativeness of the Polish economy and the economic policy of the local governments, with their emphasis on the development of container handling, intermodal transport and strengthening the capacity of seaports, airports and distribution centers. Thus, it is now the best time to create PCS systems in Poland. The failure of these actions will cause many suppliers of transport and logistics associated with the ports will develop their own individual systems. Costs of future integration of these systems in order to exploit synergies will be many times greater than the costs that would be spent now, and the conditions under which this will be done may no longer be so favorable as today.
Construction of the Port Community Systems requires overcoming many barriers. The first is to reach a common understanding of the operation of these systems and the steps needed to create them and to identify the stakeholders of future projects for the implementation of this venture. For this purpose it is necessary to conduct dialogue between companies, organizations and institutions representing the industries of transportation, freight forwarding and logistics (TSL), sectors of ICT and experts experienced in building the PCS. So far, the following events this type took place. The lecture “The role of port community systems for improving the competitiveness of ports in Europe.” was delivered at the Conference “ICT Day” organized by the Pomeranian ICT Cluster Interizon in September, 2012. Based on the “open letter” drafted in March 2013 consultations were held among some local governments, community organizations and businesses in order to obtain a preliminary opinion on the construction of port community systems in the Pomeranian Region. In result of this consultation, the idea of this project was supported by the Regional Board of Pomeranian Province, the Pomeranian ICT Cluster – Interizon and the Polish Maritime Cluster. At the XVII International Maritime Exhibition and Conference BALTEXPO held in September 2013, was delivered the lecture “PCS – a platform for communication and management of trade port and – maritime ports of Gdansk and Gdynia.”
In July 2013, Polish Maritime Cluster, has taken its program to promote and co-operation for the development of port community systems, referring to the results of the consultations and the mission to initiate cooperation between different actors in the maritime industry to achieve synergies of their actions. Further actions of the Cluster need to identify companies interested in the creation of these systems, as they may arise with the financial involvement of their future beneficiaries, according to the principle “by the community – for the community.” Polish Maritime Cluster therefore requests the companies which are being port users for an opinion on the desirability and form of cooperation in the building of Port Community Systems. To do so, please feel free to fill in the attached statement, which does not involve any further obligation from your side.
PhD Eng. Artur Pawłowski
PS.
Also, we encourage and invite you to membership in the Polish Maritime Cluster to develop cooperation in the above-described and other maritime domains.
Port Community Systems – PMC Declaration
