Yard management and scheduling system for Port of Gdańsk

Port of Gdańsk is the biggest port in Poland and one of the biggest ports located on the Baltic Sea. It is also the only port in the Baltic Sea region that has immediate container connections with China. The port handles all types of goods, starting with containers and ending with chemical goods.

The Port of Gdansk is a bustling facility, and its heavy traffic in high season was only complicating an already complex operation. Dozens of trucks arriving at the same time were blocking the gate to the Port as well as access roads, thus negatively affecting its safety and security.

The limited and unautomated control over vehicle flow, lack of data on vehicle status, and disrupted access control were difficult for employees and visitors as well. The result was a very time-consuming process with little room to improve it.

The Port authority wanted to build buffer parking lots and implement a truck arrival management system to process arriving vehicles effortlessly.

Etteplan (previously Skyrise.tech*) had only three months to deliver and test a working solution.

Ensuring uninterrupted flow of traffic

Etteplan developed a scheduling and traffic management system that eases the flow of traffic to and from the port. It also provides real-time insights about trucks going to and from the port.

The system allows freight forwarders, logistics companies or the port personnel themselves to create bookings for trucks that need to unload or load cargo at the port. Incorporating the schedule of which trucks arrive when with an automated access control based on license plate recognition brought down the entry time for trucks to the port from 4 minutes to 4 seconds.

Trucks do not just wait in line thanks to automated communication with truck drivers via SMS and special buffer parking services in case of reaching the maximum capacity at the port or when a truck arrives too early. Truck drivers always know where to go and when.

Thanks to our experience in developing vehicle tracking and management software, Etteplan completed the basic usable version of the system within the three-month timeframe.

Fixing problems

We started the work by figuring out the key challenges the Port had to tackle. The most important ones were harbour security and safety, control over the vehicle flow and quality inspections. In case of sudden weather change the Port had to be ready to evacuate the entire premises and with dozens of trucks blocking the gate and surrounding areas that task was nearly impossible.

Port of Gdansk case is the perfect example of how customized solutions can easily integrate a large number of assets and ensure security and uninterrupted flow in the organization.