With the continuous progress of science and technology, intelligent management has become an important trend in the development of various industries. In the logistics industry, as a key node for the import and export of goods, the operation efficiency and safety of port terminals are crucial to the entire logistics chain. In recent years, unattended technology has gradually changed the operation mode of port terminals, leading to a new trend of future logistics development.
The rise of unattended technology
Unattended technology realizes the automated management and intelligent monitoring of port terminals by integrating advanced automation, informatization, and Internet of Things (IoT) technology. This technology can significantly improve the efficiency of terminal operations, reduce labor costs, and enhance operational safety. The application scope of unattended technology is wide, including automated loading and unloading, intelligent scheduling, remote monitoring, and other aspects.
The advantages of unattended technology
- Improve operational efficiency: unattended technology can realize 24-hour uninterrupted operation, reduce manual intervention and greatly improve operational efficiency.2. Reduce labor cost: through the application of automation and intelligent technology, it can significantly reduce the demand for manpower and lower labor costs.3. Enhance operational safety: unattended technology can avoid safety accidents caused by human factors and enhance operational safety.
The application of unattended technology in the port terminal
- Automatic loading and unloading: unattended technology can realize automatic operation of loading and unloading equipment, reduce manual intervention, and improve loading and unloading efficiency.2. Intelligent scheduling: through the integration of an intelligent scheduling system, it can realize the intelligent scheduling and optimization of vehicles, goods, and other resources in port terminals, and improve the utilization rate of resources.3. Remote monitoring: unattended technology can realize remote monitoring and management of port terminals, discover and solve problems in time, and ensure the safety and stability of terminal operations.
Case of unattended port
Taicang Port Area is the main port area and core area of Suzhou Port, located in the east of Taicang City, at the intersection of the Yangtze River and the coastal opening, with 38.8 kilometers of Yangtze River shoreline, is the port with the largest number of routes along the Yangtze River, with the highest density and the widest coverage. Benefiting from the dredging of the 12.5-meter deep-water channel, Taicang Port has been managed as a coastal port since 2013 and has become the first inland river port in China to be approved to enjoy the treatment of a seaport.
Taicang Port Phase IV project is a trestle-type wharf, adopting the semi-automated loading and unloading process of “single trolley bridge + collector truck + automated rail crane” according to its engineering conditions, and automating the loading and unloading in the yard among the three main links of the loading and unloading system while loading and unloading in the wharf. Horizontal transportation is still operated manually. The yard is arranged along the parallel quay front, using double cantilever type automated rail cranes, within the rail for the stacking area, the use of container gantry cranes for lifting containers, under the cantilever for the truck loading and unloading lanes, the horizontal transportation and yard operation handover using the container trucks will be sent to the designated shell position way. Taicang Port Phase IV Terminal is equipped with a total of 28 sets of unmanned automated rail cranes, which can automatically recognize the location of the collector card for loading and unloading operations through AR and artificial intelligence technology. Now, the operator only needs to sit in front of the computer in the control center, you can realize the container on the yard “space fetch”.
Challenges and prospects of unattended technology
Although the application of unattended technology in port terminals has achieved remarkable results, it still faces some challenges, such as the cost of technological upgrading, equipment maintenance, and repair. However, these challenges will be gradually resolved as the technology continues to advance and the application continues to spread.
Unattended technology is one of the important directions of intelligent management in the logistics industry. In the field of port terminals, the application of unattended technology has achieved remarkable results, improving operational efficiency, reducing labor costs, and enhancing operational safety. In the future, unattended technology will be more widely used in port terminals to promote the intelligent upgrading and transformation of the logistics industry.