APM Terminals collaborated with DHI on configuring a module in their physics-based port traffic management system, NCOS ONLINE, to leverage its weather forecast capabilities for creating a decision support solution for the container yard. For six months, DHI experts on meteorology, aerodynamics and integrated IT solutions worked alongside experienced terminal operators. Together, they produced a solution, which offers the container yard personnel in MedPort Tangier highly detailed wind forecasts and predicts exactly which containers are at risk at any given time.
Artificial intelligence
The NCOS ONLINE YardSafe Module is powered by an AI engine, which provides much more accurate predictions of wind speed and direction at the terminal and automatically alerts users when pre-set wind speed criteria are forecast to be exceeded.
‘The tool pulls the weight, size and position of each container from the terminal operating system and builds a live 3D model of the yard, updated in real-time with each container movement’, explains Ahmed. ’Machine learning, or “artificial intelligence” capabilities, also identifies each time the actual weather does not match the forecast, and the system learns from the deviation and improves the forecasting.’
Global Safety Awards
The Wind Resilience Tool was selected from hundreds of entries as a finalist in APM Terminal’s annual Global Safety Awards. The theme of the Awards is ‘We Learn and Adapt’. Ideas that focus on APM Terminals constantly work to identify the safety risks in operations and proactively put in place safeguards to ensure that even when things go wrong, they don’t lead to severe or fatal injuries.
The awards identify projects that effectively reduce risk, involve the frontline and demonstrate leadership commitment. Winning ideas also contribute to efficiency and reliability and can be implemented across APM Terminals locations around the world.