Utvecklingen av maritima containerterminaler - En fallstudie av APM Terminals verksamhet i Göteborg

Abstract

The purpose of this report is to present the operations in container terminals, highlight the underlying factors for port expansion and evaluate the development and future potential of the container terminal in the port of Gothenburg. The paper consists of a literature study of maritime container terminals, as well as a case study of the container terminal in the port of Gothenburg operated by APM Terminals. Since the introduction of the container, the amount of goods transported in these standardized steel boxes has steadily increased. Increasing containerization, along with the continuous growth of global trade, has resulted in enormous volume developments within the container segment. In order to assimilate the increasing amount of cargo, there is a continuous development regarding ship size. The last twenty years the size of the biggest containerships has more than quadrupled in the quest to obtain economies of scale and thus increase the efficiency of the transport. The paradox of the shipping industry however, is that efficiency only can be obtained if similar performance can be matched in the land-based organization found in ports and container terminals. As a result, there is a continuous demand for expansion within major container ports. Not only due to the sole reason of being able to stow the even larger containerships, but due to higher container throughput and the increased concentration of goods at each arrival. A demand for increased efficiency and performance is requested by costumers, which results in an increasing competition between geographically close ports. Competitiveness among container ports is defined by price, vessel turnaround time and terminal throughput. In order to achieve this, there is a high demand for advanced technology to efficiently interact with the human factor and logistical theories.