THE US Port of Oakland's new tech platform, Oakland Portal, has been rolled out to provide a single data and communication point for sea freight operations
THE US Port of Oakland's new tech platform, Oakland Portal, has been rolled out to provide a single data and communication point for sea freight operations. The portal was created by New Jersey-based logistics software provider Advent Intermodal Solutions as an extension of its customer-based eModal system, which the port's four marine terminals all use as a customer interface, reported UK's Container Management.
The port authority's maritime director John Driscoll said: 'This is what our industry is asking for. We're providing a comprehensive digital view of ships, cargo and terminal information al in one place on the computer - no more clicking through multiple websites.'
The online gateway consolidates information from Oakland's four active marine terminals, with data including vessel schedules, cargo status and live camera views of port thoroughfares.
The features are available to all users, although, additional specialised functions such as paying terminal fees, cargo status updates and trucker appointments are available with registration and login.
A future iteration, expected to be provided in early 2019, would incorporate real-time performance metrics and dashboards customised for the various portal users such as motor carriers and cargo owners.
The port said that supply chain operators would better manage trade flow with the portal in place since cargo owners will know with greater precision when to expect merchandise, while trucking companies will know exactly when and where to dispatch drivers for container pick-up.
Container volumes at the west coast hub rose by 2.9 per cent during the first four months of the year, with 791,371 TEU handled.
April 2018 was the port's best month ever for imports in its 90-year history. The volume for loaded imports was 75,369 TEU beating the previous record of 75,243 loaded imports in April 2006.
Loaded imports and exports were up by 1.2 per cent and 0.5 per cent respectively between January and April.
