Is the Rapid Increase in Maritime Transports a Threat or an Opportunity for Port Cities? A System Dynamics Analysis (original) (raw)
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Proceedings of the 5th …, 2006
The paper presents an analysis of the international and national sea transportation sector with special focus on the Liguria ports (Genoa, Savona and La Spezia). Among other Italian ports these present interesting growing potential but are limited in their growth by lack of space and poor logistics expansion possibilities. The authors have identified a scenario based simulation methodology able to quantitatively evaluate possible strategies and investments effects. In such approach High Level Simulation (i.e. System Dynamics) and hi-Fidelity models (i.e. discrete event simulators) are combined in order to obtain a strategic Decision Support Systems that can be applied in several real industrial application. The paper presents the possible evolution of international, national and regional sea transportation with particular respect to the link existing among sea inland logistics, then is outlining a quantitative model able to describe the complex iteration among the various actors by defining their potentials and identifying the possible bottlenecks. This hi level model, implemented in System Dynamics, can be improved by implementing specific hi fidelity sub models using commercially available packages. The paper finally presents a real life application of the proposed methodology able to accurately model the Alexandria dry ports scenario connected with the three major Genoa port terminals: S.E.C.H., Messina and VTE.
Factors affecting seaport capacity : Managerial implications for a simulation framework
2013
Abstract: A seaport is a key part of a supply chain. However the problem of system-wide capacity shortage puts seaport authorities under pressure to keep up to date with ways in which to solve it. The purpose of this study is to propose a System Dynamics (SD) framework for managerial decision making that is developed based on the factors affecting seaport capacity. Hence the proposed capacity management framework inherits the potential for use at ports in capacity-management-related problem solving. The framework would be of importance in assisting managers in identifying possible capacity expansion opportunities. Academics and those with corporate interests in the capacity management of ports have raised many issues in recent years in which there has been steady growth in the number of containers transported worldwide.
A SYSTEMS APPROACH TO MODERN PORT PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT
Change is a primary consideration in the design of today's complex organizations. As the environment becomes more turbulent, forces of change compel organizations to re-evaluate their situation. Under such conditions, strategic management will play a more important role in affecting the firm's long-term performance. In dynamic environments, we find firms responding in different ways. We find that firms vary greatly in the manner in which they create the capacity to defend, enlarge, or change their individual domains. However, the speed with which firms adapt to such change is crucial; to a large extent it is dependent upon the degree of responsiveness that they have built into their management systems.
The port as a system of systems: A System Dynamics simulation approach
2012
The particular complexity that characterizes a maritime port makes it belonging to the category of a system of systems. In fact, the functioning of a port is made possible thanks to the interaction of numerous subsystems, which in turn depend on other systems. The goal of the present paper is to provide a description of a port as a system of systems and to model and simulate the port rail process in some Italian container terminals, by using the software Powersim Studio, implementing the System Dynamics methodology. "What-If" scenarios have been tested with the objective of underlining the system bottlenecks and proposing improvement suggestions.
System Dinamics Simulation : an Application to Regional Logistics Policy Making
2007
The fast-pace development of trades with the Far East is giving the Mediterranean Sea the chance of becoming a major logistics hub. In the Mediterranean-front E.U. regions, public and private investments are aimed at this opportunity by integrating transportation networks, sea ports, and inland logistics platforms. With specific regard to the NorthWest of Italy, a model based on System Dynamics has been simulated to help decision and policy makers in the task of planning and directing the investment effort. The model provides impact analysis of freight traffic flow trends in the region on the medium and long-term, as a result of the interaction between exogenous variables and different case-scenarios for road and railroad infrastructure investments.
Evaluating port efficiency in the Mediterranean
International Journal of Data Analysis Techniques and Strategies, 2013
During the last years, there was rapid development in the world port industry which is considered to have resulted from the increase of universal trade. The key to the development of each port is its adaptability to the earliest developments and its resistance to the increasing competition. The influence zones of each port are characterised by instability, while each port authority aims at the creation and exploitation of competitive assets, setting store on specialisation and increase of productivity of each port's functions. The aims of this study are the comparative efficiency evaluation of ports in the Mediterranean with the use of DEA analysis, the exploitation of the factors that affect ports' efficiency using a second-stage Tobit analysis and the potential of each port in the era of larger container volumes attraction. The study will focus on the ports which display or are able to display significant achievement in transhipment movement.
The Modelling Support to Maritime Terminals Sea Operation: The Case Study of Port of Messina
Journal of maritime research, 2012
The maritime freight and passengers traffic is ever more increasing and the estimation of the sea-side port capacity is an strategic factor to guarantee a high level of ship services quality by means of the optimisation of layout and the improvement of quay services in terms of better time distribution of arrival and departure of ships in port. In the past the authors developed a synthetic combinatorial model capable to analyse sea-side port operation, characterised by the overlap of many different ships traffic, and to evaluate the limit of their capacity as number of ships movement. In the present research the authors have developed a sea-side operation simulation model, based on a flexible and powerful general-purpose platform, structured for capacity estimation and traffic analysis and capable to support both design and operational planning process and to relate the terminal utilisation degree with the quality of the concerned transport services. The paper describes the model an...
Journal of Cleaner Production, 2016
Ports can be considered as nodes in a (global) network and the accessibility of ports is an important indicator of economic performance. In addition, ports are important in modern societies and make a substantial contribution to the GDP of a city, a region or a country. To connect with the hinterland, ports make use of different modalities, such as trucks, trains, ships, and pipelines. But, at the same time, these modalities generate negative effects, such as emissions and noise, which need to be addressed. We call this the need for a more sustainable ports and hinterland connection. In this article we present a conceptual framework and simulation of sustainability measures and their effectiveness. The starting point of this framework is the identification of four different options, which can be considered as part of a dynamic (transport) system. These options can contribute to a (more) sustainable transport system, but the dynamics are the determining factor to assess its success. This paper combines the outcomes of both a qualitative and a quantitative study, and is structured in three parts. In the first part, on the basis of a literature study we discuss the dynamic relationships in the triangle: GDP, port-related transport, and sustainability. The second part, based on both a literature study and interviews, describes four options to improve sustainable port-hinterland transport performance. These options are presented in the context of a detailed analysis of feedback loops generated by the system dynamics (SD) model and a simulation study in the Port of Shanghai case. Finally, we consider the opportunities and limitations of these four options as an integrated part of the policy framework for the Port of Shanghai. One of the most important conclusions of this paper is that sustainable port related hinterland transport should be considered an organizational issue. The biggest challenge for the transition to a sustainable port related hinterland transport system is not to develop new technology (hardware or tech-ware), but to develop new governance arrangements (org-ware).
Infrastructure Changes of the Sea Passenger Port Based on a Digital Transport Model
Transport Problems, 2021
Marine passenger ports and terminals are key transport facilities that influence the development and positioning of a region, city or country. The port infrastructure should provide the world requirements in service of cruise and ferry ships, and ensure the efficiency and convenience in service of passengers and associated cargo flow. This circumstance determines the necessity of infrastructure modernization, and hardware and software renewal. At the same time, the existing equipment in ports and terminals is gradually becoming outdated, hence the necessity of modernization on the basis of development of a decision-making system. This decision-making system should no longer be based on analytical models, but on new digital transport models of sea passenger ports and terminals. These digital models must take into account both passenger handling processes and external processes for handling cruise and ferry ships. The model should have high computational power and take into account the influence of the external environment. These models should answer development forecasting questions and provide an accurate decision-making system for the validity of infrastructure changes. The Passenger Port of Saint Petersburg "Marine Façade" (St. Petersburg) was chosen as the subject of research. To construct a numerical model, port operation intensity, passenger, cruise and ferry vessel handling processes were investigated; port and terminal development strategies and the mutual influence of the "city-port" systems on each other were studied. As a result of the analysis, a new digital transport model of the sea passenger port was built, which has a high level of detail and accuracy of process implementation, high productivity and efficiency of analysis of various infrastructure changes in the port, allowing the inclusion of dynamic changes from the external environment. The numerical model has been fully implemented for this port, and new conclusions have been derived from it. The use of these new models allows justification of infrastructure upgrades and to study the position of the port in the region in relation to competitors' ports. The developed tool allows solving the problem of research on port processes at any level of planning and enables integration into the information systems already existing in ports and terminals.
Feasibility Analysis of System Dynamics for Inland Maritime Logistics
2014
In the last decades, a number of factors have re-shaped the shipping industry, including the growth of international trade, the emergence of new markets, and the development of multimodal supply chains. This has led the maritime transportation system, which includes ocean and coastal routes, and inland waterways, along with other modes of transportation such as, railways, roads, and air-freight to become a critical part of the global supply chains and freight transportation systems. Due to the complexity of such a system: a growing number of systems that are interconnected and working together to achieve a purpose; a system dynamics approach is used in the literature to simulate the maritime transportation system and its integration within the supply chain, into the U.S. surface transportation system modes of truck and rail. In the initial phase of this research, an integrative literature review of applications of system dynamics in the maritime transportation system was conducted. ...