Ramesh Shivakumaran: More Vital Port Management Concepts

Owing to the extent and complexity of operating ports, there are still remaining concepts Gulftainer Company Limited shares to its website guests who include owners, investors, workers and clients of ports around the world. These principles involve specific requirements for port managers to consider in operating port facilities. Gultainer's almost four decades of experience in port management and interacting with other port management companies has allowed it to expand its own knowledge and capability in the industry.

Here are some vital concepts worth considering:

1. Understanding the responsibility for and nature of marine operations allows port managers to recognize the special skills needed to operate ports. Some of these particular tasks include conservancy, dredging, proper use of navigation aids, navigation control techniques and other functions related to the industry. One almost has to have direct experience in the tasks mentioned above in order to truly appreciate the value and purpose of these functions. Many, if not all, boat captains once worked as a young sailor or a first mate before given the daunting task of ship pilot. So with running ports; one needs to have his hands dipped into one of the menial tasks of the business first in order to fully understand the significance and importance of the whole operation.

2. Understanding the management of cargo operations on board and ashore will provide port managers a working knowledge of the dynamic requirements of the business. In connection with this, one also has to appreciate the vital importance of preventing traffic and cargo congestion within the port environment to achieve a smooth operation. Nothing can mess up a port more easily than the lack of coordination and loss of time arising from machinery breakdown and worker inefficiency. Maintaining a ship-shape company requires proper training and regular monitoring of employee skills and morale.

3. Fully understanding the value of safety management provides port managers the capacity to establish a risk-free environment for workers and clients. Use of heavy equipment and moving of large cargoes and transport vehicles require utmost care and skills on the part of operators and also managers. Working as a team, safety for all concerned will be achieved according to well-established safety measures learned and developed through many years of experience.

4. Completely appreciating the importance of security to prevent terrorism, illegal immigration, theft and smuggling reduces the occurrence of illegal and criminal acts perpetrated by insiders as well as outsiders. Such activities are deemed unavoidable in many port terminals all over the world. Syndicates thrive because corruption breeds among discontented workers and petty criminals among employees who may conspire with criminals or terrorists to gain personal benefits. Providing tight security protection and safeguards is demanded of port managers, without any exception or excuse.

5. Finally, port managers must understand the role of trade unions and other labor organizations including the ITF to be able to appreciate the needs of workers and their demands for certain benefits or concessions from the company. Bargaining with these unions and organizations fully armed with the facts and figures will help ease tensions and alleviate unprofitable work stoppages and violent confrontations which sometimes happen anywhere where there is labor dispute.

Gulftainer is aware of all the issues involved in port management; after all, it has been in the business for 39 years already. The social, legal, political and economic issues that revolve around operating these ports can easily beset and stall the unprepared, the uninitiated and the unappreciative company. All these dimensions exist because the company is dealing with real-life conditions that affect the survival of not one company or a few individuals but millions of lives located in many cities and nations of the world.

Ramesh Shivakumaran and Gulftainer has made it its business to provide service that covers and resolves all these issues for the benefit of all people concerned.