Traxens, a company providing high-value data and services for the supply chain industry, is collaborating with the MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, a global leader in transportation and logistics, on a pilot IoT project in the Port of Valencia, Spain, aimed at improving the operational efficiency of the port. Specifically, Traxens co-operates on this project with MSC Terminal Valencia, the Port Authority at the Port of Valencia and Fundacion Valenciaport (FVP). The trial started in September 2018.
As part of the pilot project, MSC Spain trucks have been equipped with Traxens’ dedicated IoT devices, allowing for near real-time tracking of movement of vehicles. This can help port authorities to predict and manage potential congestion, as well as to anticipate truck arrivals at the gates. Overall operational efficiency is therefore expected to significantly improve due to easy monitoring of on-site road activity and improved fleet management as well as pre- and post-carriage management. Traxens has installed a gateway in the MSC Terminal to allow enhanced and secured connectivity. It will also provide access to its big data analytics platform, TraxensHub, via APIs, bringing enhanced analytics and reporting capabilities for port authorities.
“Our pilot project at the Port of Valencia is one of the first applications of an IoT system in a port environment and we are eagerly awaiting results,” said Jacques Delort, managing director of Traxens. “We believe that big data is the future of the shipping industry. We are delighted that we could co-operate on such an important project with the Port of Valencia, which has ValenciaportPCS, one of the best-in-class Port Community Systems.”
“We have already used IoT devices by Traxens for tracking our containers and we believe that the functionality can really help port authorities in improving operations. This could bring benefits to all parties,” said Jaime Lopez, intermodal project leader, MSC Spain.
“The Port of Valencia believes in the role of innovation and digitalization in the future of shipping ports, for example by using the PCS (Port Community Systems) integration platform. We are delighted to provide a trial site for Traxens, which could eventually result in the improvement of operations for the whole of the shipping industry,” said Miguel Llop, director of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), at the Fundacion Valenciaport.
Following a successful pilot trial, Traxens aims to extend its solution to other terminals within the Port of Valencia, by deploying additional gateways. The existing gateway will then be used for testing and improving processes related to all smart containers passing through the area.