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Ports and container terminals, planning and design and the resulting economic benefits

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with the advent of containerization a major boost has been provided to trade activities around the world. This intermodal freight system makes use of large scale containers to transport goods by way of ships, railroad cars, cargo planes and trailer trucks. This method of transportation has enabled quick and cost effective movement of goods from one place to another resulting in better fulfillment of market demands.

Infrastructure and Trade Corridors
Infrastructure is one of the basic necessities to promote trade and commerce activities between different regions. A network of highways, railroads transportation and ports improves the freight carrying capacity across any region. This network combined with favorable excise and tariff duties ensures development of a trade corridor promoting smooth movement of goods.

Port and Container Terminal Master Planning
Maritime facilities are a crucial part of this process being able to transport large volume of cargo at a time without considerable expenditure of available resources. Planning is vital for the successful completion of high end infrastructural projects like construction of ports and container marine terminals.

The development of ports and container terminals requires involvement of various entities like
  • Government agencies
  • Maritime transport advisors
  • Engineering firms
  • Trade and commerce consultants

Standards and specifications adherence
A professional organization that can combine these aspects namely the economic, logistic, operational and financial aspects is the need of the hour today. Right from the initial concept and design to overseeing the construction and later on providing a roadmap for the daily operations, a firm that is involved in the various stages of the project contributes the most to its success.
This enables the construction to take place strictly according to the blueprint design, adhering to the technical specifications. The long term usability of any maritime facility depends on this crucial aspect often overlooked due to lack of expertise.

Developing a port terminal requires extensive planning based on
  • The geography and topography of the area
  • Available space
  • Equipment to be used for construction
  • Scale of operations

Besides these other factors include government polices for trade, duties, labor practices and environmental regulations also need to be considered.

Maritime Navigation and Simulation
Maritime activities like vessel maneuvering, navigation, and porting need to be properly integrated with the design plans for smooth inflow of ships and preventing accidents like collisions. Simulation methods are a great help in this regard which reveal potential outcomes and flaws before any financial investment is done.

Port Capacity
The capacity of a port depends on how many metric tons of cargo the port can handle often calculated on an annual basis. The modern port can handle millions of tons of cargo annually on account of advanced methods of shipping and containerization. Some automated container terminal ports in the U.S routinely manage cargo in the range of over 2 billion tons in the form of domestic as well as imports and exports.

Port Security
Port security is another aspect that needs to be addressed effectively in the form of constant surveillance for protection of life from mishaps and infrastructure from accidents or sabotage. Security terminals, entry points and gates need to be designed keeping in mind prescribed standards and specifications.

Environment
Ports today are looked at not only from a trade and transportation point of view but also from an environmental one. Maritime activities presently are regulated by laws to prevent and minimize damages to fragile marine ecosystems.
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