The port of Thessaloniki is located in the Thermaicos Gulf, west of the city of Thessaloniki and is a major gateway to the Balkans and Southeastern Europe, due to its location, infrastructure and wide range of provided services. Due to its advantageous geographical location and its excellent road and rail connections, it is considered the largest port of transit trade in the country and serves the needs of the approximately 15 million inhabitants of its international hinterland.
It has been designated as a Port of International Interest in the National Port System (Government Gazette 202B / 16.2.07) and one of the five Greek ports that belong to the Core Network of Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T). ThPA S.A. provides ship docking services, handling of all types of cargo and passenger traffic, while applying the strictest safety standards and requirements of the ISPS code (International Ship and Port Facility Security Code) for the security of the port facilities of the port of Thessaloniki.
ThPA S.A. has a significant experience in participating in European multilateral cooperation programs related to research and implementation of pilot applications, in the fields of multimodal transport and logistics as well as exploring the possibilities of developing combined transport in the region of SE Europe connected to the Trans-European Transport Networks.
Therefore, participates as Coordinator of the Internet of Containers Project, which receives funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), under the Operational Program “Central Macedonia” of the NSRF 2014-2020.
Improving the security and reliability of cargo transported through containers to ports is vital to developing efficient supply networks. On this basis, optimizing their management processes can have significant results added value throughout the supply chain. Optimizing operations at a Container Terminal (which is the starting point of globalized supply networks) can be achieved mainly by optimizing container management procedures and reducing waiting time. Ship waiting time is an important factor that can be a competitive advantage. Containers with low average waiting times can attract more ships than port terminals with high average waiting times. Waiting and waiting times in the docking area of port terminals are the biggest problem port managers face. Long waiting times have a negative impact on port terminal performance and shipowners prefer to dock at a terminal port with low waiting time and high efficiency.
ThPA S.A. provides basic information about E / C, which circulates through SEMPO, on the organization’s website (eg, “Find E / C”, “E / C to Check”) which are provided in a delayed manner and do not allow to the customer to have traceability of the C / C and visibility regarding the status of the transported cargo. The proposed IoC system will enhance the development of the ThPA S.A. in terms of a range of advantages:
- Personalized information services: The TPA will be able to upgrade the services provided to its customers by collecting and providing data at E / C level and personalized information. The website of the system will allow the configuration of the environment for each customer so that it is possible to have direct access to data and information that are deemed most necessary.
- Forecast of total E / C management time: The IoC system will allow the satisfactory forecast of the processing time of each I / C at all stages of the voyage along the supply chain, thus reducing the variability of ship and customer service.