Australian Port Operations Port Authority

Question: Discuss about theAustralian Port Operationsfor Port Authority. Answer: Introduction Sydney ports are managed by Port Authority of New South Wales, a government corporation that manages operations of Sydney Harbor, ports of New Castle, Port Botany, along with other seaports situated in Eden and the region of Yamba (Port Authority of South Wales, 2016). The Sydney ports were established according to State Owned Corporations Act, 1989. It manages all the functions and the operations of Sydney Harbor that includes 11 berths, including dry cargo, liquid and cruise terminal facilities for entertainment that includes land in Walsh Bay, region of glebe Island/White bay and a passenger terminal at circular Quay called Overseas (Port Authority of South Wales, 2016). The detailed functioning and day-to-day operations of the port are obtained from the provisions of State Owned Corporations Act 1989, and Port Safety Operating License (PSOL), and Ports and Maritime Administration Act 1995 (Port Authority of South Wales, 2016). The Sydney ports manages all the operations of the or ganization including the services related to marine operations, survey, safety and security of the environment, vessel traffic and marine operations. The port authority also deals with operations of Sydneys international cruise terminals which are called overseas Passenger Terminal at Circular Quay and White Bay Cruise Terminal (Royal Caribbean International, 2016). The major responsibility of Sydney port is to manage the responsibility of the harbor Master, manage the channels and the approaches of ports, safe navigation and shipping from the port, securing the premises from any unwanted activity, and safe operations. The safe operations of the company include implementing dangerous goods regulations and developing contingency plans and emergency support for marine accidents and problems (Harbour Masters Directions, 2016). Other than that, oil spill is also a major issue for the sea environment; therefore, it also regulates oil clean ups in marine environment. The Sydney ports can also provide dry bulk facilities at Glebe Island (Port Authority of South Wales, 2016). In all the ports, the company aims to provide best services and professional services to the customers to add value to the customer satisfaction and gain competitive advantage over other port management organizations. In the following report, the day-o-day operations of the Sydney port are discussed along with the logistics and the supply chain in the port. Later, the report also shed light on the sustainability practices of the port. Day-to-Day Port Operations The authority of Sydney ports aims to become respectable port manager which provides commercially feasible operations along with contributing to the growth of the Australian economy. The company has adopted competitive approach wherein it provides highly advanced services at minimal charges. The port accommodates all kind of vehicles including cargo and passenger ships or ships dedicated to fishing or research which have to pay the port charges (Schedule of Port Charges Sydney, 2016). All these vessels have a fixed schedule at which they depart or arrive at the Sydney ports. The port charges depend upon the navigation services, pilotage and mooring fees (Port Authority of NSW: Port Charges, 2016). The Sydney Harbor is also the worlds premier land cruise destination and has two cruise passenger terminals dedicated for the ports in Australia. The cruise business across the world is blooming exponentially. Sydney is the home to the excellent tourist destinations which attract the tourists from all across the world. It also supports the cruise business of the port. The peak season of the cruise business is from January to March with over 114 ships scheduled in 2015 peak season. The cruise schedule is developed on the forecast for the next 18 months. The information includes the projected arrivals and the departure of the vessels through the two passenger terminals of the Sydney port (Port Authority of NSW, 2016). As Sydney port is home to large passenger ships, vessels and recreational boating, appropriate navigation services are provided which includes pilotage and vessel traffic service (VTS). The entrance and the departure of any vessel or commercial ship are controlled by the harbor master. Harbor master control the time and procedure by which any ship enters/ exits from the port. Safe navigation in the port encompasses activities including risk evaluation, risk mitigation and pilotage, vessel traffic service and port procedures. Other procedures are also applied for the safe operations in the port. It includes staff safety, safety of shipping community, port neighbors, environment and visitors (URS, n.d). The port employees also regularly monitor the boat movement in the sea (Birtchnell, Savitzky and Urry, 2015). When a commercial large vehicle are transited to the sea, the staff members monitors that no recreational boat is in vicinity. Other than that, they also follow certain guidelines for the preservation of the marine environment. Primarily, there are two commercial ports that come under the wing of Sydney ports, namely, Sydney harbor and Botany Bay. Recently, the company has invested in the infrastructure and economic assets to meet the trade needs of New South Wales and Australia. Both of these ports in a combined manner handle the trade of 61 billion dollars each year. In Sydney harbor, pilotage is available to the customers twenty-four hours every day and is necessary to undertake for all the ships other than the ones coming under section 79 of the PMA 1995 (Ports and Maritime administration Act 1995). In the Sydney harbor, the ships can approach or exit from two approach channels namely, The Western Channel, a two hundred and ten meters wide channel and the Eastern Channel, a one hundred and eighty meters wide channel. Substantial consideration is given to the harbor entrance and three gates are constructed of different dimensions, namely, harbor entrance 24.4 meters, Eastern Channel, of 10.5 meters and W estern channel of 13.7 meters. The bottom of all the gates is constructed using sand and sill. The harbor also provides various ship and repair services that includes survey and safety equipment implementation for all the vessels. The harbor master controls the direction and the movement of the port within the harbor boundary (Sydney Ports Handbook, 2012). Value Chain, Logistics and Operations The international shipping industry makes a significant contribution to the global cargo transportation and logistics. However, the shipping industry faces several challenges in terms of return over vessels transportation, merchandise rates and returns for the shareholder. Moreover, it is also significantly influenced by the variations in political and the economic environment of a country. The technological innovations, financial crisis and environmental concerns related to the sea life also affect the transportation from the waterways. However, ship freight is important for the economic activities and international trade. Ships are the primary means through which the products are transported from the place of production to the places of consumption on a large scale (pwc, 2016). The shipping industry encompasses two shipping method, namely, tramp and liner shipping. The tramp shipping provides flexible and convenient transportation of bulk cargos for long distances. It usually invol ves cross-ocean movement and dry or liquid bulk cargo. The liquid cargo is transport through tanker shipping. The liner shipping involves high-capacity ships that have fixed routes or fixed schedules and transit across the ocean (Lun, Lai Cheng, 2010). The Sydney ports provide a number of port freight and logistics services to provide better services at the port precinct. It is considered as the leader in providing world-class and efficient logistics services to its customers. In this business division, the Sydney ports provide and offer services that ease the process of freight movement to and fro from the ports. It also provides the shipping services. The shipping facilities can be defined as the process of moving freight or cargo from port to sea on a vessel or a ship. Numerous ships visit Sydney port for this purpose (Easter Holiday Operating Hours, 2012). This section of port administration is exclusively controlled by Shipping Australia Limited, which is an exclusive body in this sector. Among Sydney ports, the Sydney Harbor and the port botany provides the services of navigating a vessel into or within the port waters. The towage and line services are also considered as a part of the logistics services provided by the harbor. It includes the services that support safe and well-organized movement of ships as they arrive or depart from the harbor (Port Authority of South Wales, 2016). The shipping Australia limited is the administrative body that cont rols the movement of the ships in the ports Sydney. It is the primary body in the Australia that controls the movement of the ship and promotes or promotes the interest of the ship owners or users in developing shipping policies and laws (Shipping Australia Limited, 2016). Sustainability Practices in the Sydney Ports In the recent decade, the concepts of sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) have emerged as an important theme in the global business arena. The companies have started developing strategies that take care of the economic, social, and the environmental dimensions of the community wherein they are living (Mallin, 2009). The sustainability practices or the CSR activities refers to the approach of taking a long-term prospective wherein the current requirements are met without sacrificing the ability of the future generations to meet their requirements. In this light, the business managers while developing business strategies take into consideration the sales and profit as well as the sustainable development of the society and the business (Petrini Pozzebon, 2010). In this regard, New South Waless government and port administration is dedicated to save environment and wildlife and to preserve the Sydney harbor, Botany Bay and the adjoining ports in nearby locations. The administrative body also intends to maintain the balance between the interests of different communities like local community, port and the environment. The environmental management approach adopted by the Port Authority is constituted from ISO:14001:2004. The intent of the method is to integrate the recognition and the management of the environmental risk across all the business functions and invite cooperation from all the stakeholders of the company. These environmental protection strategies include identification of potential risk, developing methods to minimize the impact of the risk on public and environment, monitoring the operations of the company, complying with the local environmental law and establishing communication link with all the communities. In addition to it, Sydney Ports also emphasize on the development of a commercially profitable sea port which is also environmentally-friendly. Therefore, the amount of the energy resources utilized such as water, energy and materials are constantly reduced in the port through technical interventions. The Port Authority also works with the residents, local and the state government for maintaining and implementing proper infrastructure and systems in the port premises to handle the impact of the climate change on the organization. Currently, the Port administration is preparing risk assessment for climate change and considering the integration of factors that mitigate climate change in the developing applications of the company. To minimize the use of natural resources, Port Authority of New South Wales has participated in Sydney Every Water Drop Counts Business Program and developed an internal group that focused on minimizing resource utilization, namely, Green Warriors. The Port Authority of New South Wales also takes responsibility to protect the environment and acknowledges the interests of the local community. The port management works collaboratively with the local community to minimize the impact of the port operations on the environment and the surroundings. In this regard, the port authority has obtained a range of initiatives that include establishment of committees and groups to manage the operations of the port and investing to uplift the living standards of the local community (Port Authority of New South Wales, 2016). Conclusion Conclusively, it can be stated that the Sydney ports is among the leading sea ports across the globe. It manages the operations of Sydney Harbor, Port Botany, ports of New Castle, along with other seaports situated in Eden and Yamba. The legislations defined in the State Owned Corporations Act 1989, Ports and Maritime Administration Act 1995 and PSOL define the current provisions and management of the Sydney Port. At a single day, all kinds of vehicle such a ships dedicated to cargo and passengers or the ships focused on fishing or research have to pay the port charges enters or exits the harbor. The port pay is dependent upon the cargo and the size of the ships. The harbor master, navigation services, pilotage and mooring services are constantly provided to all the incoming ports. The New South Wales government and port administration also implements several sustainability practices to mitigate the impact of port operations on the local community. References Birtchnell, T., Savitzky, S. and Urry, J. (2015). Cargomobilities: Moving Materials in a Global Age. London: Routledge. Easter Holiday Operating Hours. (2012). Port Botany Container Operations. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/17388/Port_Botany_2012_Easter_Holiday_Hours_.pdf Harbour Masters Directions. 2016. Port Authority of New South Wales. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/port_operations/harbour_masters_directions Lun, Y.H., Lai, K.H., Cheng, TCE. (2010). Shipping and Logistics Management. Springer Science Business Media. Mallin, C.A. (2009). Corporate Social Responsibility: A Case Study Approach. London: Edward Elgar Publishing. Petrini, M., Pozzebon, M. (2010). Integrating Sustainability into Business Practices: Learning from Brazilian Firms. Brazilian Administrative Review 7(4), 362-378. Port Authority of New South Wales. (2016). Cruise Schedule Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/port_operations/cruise_schedule Port Authority of New South Wales. (2016). Sustainability: Community. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/sustainability/community Port Authority of New South Wales: Port Charges. (2016). Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/port_operations/port_charges Port Authority of South Wales. (2016) About us. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/ Pwc. (2016). Shipping Ports. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/industries/transportation-logistics/shipping-ports.html Royal Caribbean International. (2016). Port of Sydney, Australia. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/faq/details.do?pagename=frequently_asked_questionsfaqId=2738faqSubjectId=331 Schedule of Port Charges Sydney. (2016). PORT AUTHORITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/33359/Sydney_Schedule_of_Port_Charges_1_July_2016.pdf Shipping Australia Limited. (2016). Role of Shipping Australia Limited. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://shippingaustralia.com.au/role-of-shipping-australia-limited/ Sydney Ports Handbook 7th Edition. (2012). Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/17550/SPC9761_SPC_2011-12_Handbook_LR_spreads_120dpi.pdf URS. (n.d.). Terminal Operations. Retrieved on 6 December 2016 from https://www.sydneyports.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0013/2407/Ch_06.pdf