A key stakeholder in the Tema Port is Meridian Port Services Limited (MPS)
Earlier this year, the Government led by the Vice- President, His Excellency, Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, issued a directive for the Ports to go Paperless in a bid to address the issues of inefficiencies facing the operations of the Port. The directive took effect on September albeit a few challenges that are being addressed by the appropriate authorities.
A key stakeholder in the Tema Port is Meridian Port Services Limited (MPS), it is the largest and most efficient container terminal operator in West and Central Africa. MPS has since the commencement of its operations in 2007, invested in the state of the art Information Technology, Container Handling Equipment and has continued to enhance these to meet the ever increasing efficiency required in the container handling business and port industry at large.
It started with a Terminal Operating System (TOS) provided by Navis SPARCS, a world class port solutions provider, and currently running on Navis N4 database with XPS (Operational tool) that is the latest generation TOS.
Mr Mohamed Samara, the CEO of MPS, recalled that back in 2014, MPS boosted its waterfront and yard efficiency with the investment in more sophisticated gantry cranes and implemented new container positioning and tracking technology using the cutting-edge Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS). It also fitted all cranes & trucks with computers connected to the TOS enabling seamless execution and updating of containers’ moves between the operations and the TOS database.
In this enhanced environment the workforce were redeployed. The Tallymen that were manually writing/recording container movements as well as directing trucks on the ground are now deployed within the Operations Planning Office as “Planners and Dispatchers” using the TOS “Prime Routes” and “Expect Decking” technologies with the aid of CCTV and Radios. “Since 2014, Dispatchers & Planners have efficiently executed paperless container movement tasks from the comfort of their office, The Navis Expert Decking does not only make decisions to maximise yard space utilization but also takes into account equipment availability and location to determine the best slot for a container while Navis PrimeRoute minimises horizontal transport, increasing labour productivity as well as minimizing equipment cost thereby contributing to better asset utilization”, Mr Samara said.
This year MPS has embarked on further automation to enhance the operational efficiency, increased workforce productivity and reduced the burden of its customers in the cargo clearing and forwarding processes. MPS’s quest and actions from its early days have been geared towards being paperless and even more so meets the recent directives from His Excellency Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, Vice President of the Republic of Ghana for boosting Tema Port’s efficiency.
MPS management is very much focused on improving efficiency by optimising its operations, productivity and visibility for terminal users. The CEO of MPS said, “we use the industry best practices with our innovative technology to deliver world-class services that enable us to maximise performance with reduced risk”. He further explained that with this initiative customers from the comfort of their offices using computers or smartphones, can generate/retrieve invoices, make payment and book a truck appointment.
Again, Shipping Lines can track their containers during the delivery process from the MPS Terminal while customers are no longer obliged to submit hardcopies of Shipping Line delivery orders and Customs Release to MPS for confirmation. MPS TOS is automatically updated when delivery orders are issued and Customs Releases are approved via GICCS. This means processes that previously could take hours to complete can now take about 5 minutes. Live transaction notifications are sent to the customers through EDI messages, SMS and or email. The process summary for various types of transactions is as follows:
CONSIGNEE IMPORT DELIVERY
•Agent processes release with Shipping Lines, Customs and other statutory bodies;
•MPS will automatically receive the electronic releases via GICCS;
•Registered Clearing Agents may log on to MPS Web Portal;
o Request/Create the container(s) invoice online;
o Make payment online;
o Book a truck Entry Permit online & send Truck(s) to MPS;
•MPS will load container(s) on truck(s) and issue Waybill/EIR at Gating-out;
•MPS TOS will transmit EDI to the GICCS & Lines’ servers.
ICD IMPORT DELIVERY
•ICD Terminal processes their container allocation with the Shipping Line and Customs.
•Once the Cargo Movement Report (CMR) is created, GICCS automatically updates MPS TOS;
•ICD Terminal sends trucks to MPS;
•On Gating-out containers, MPS TOS will transmit EDI to the GICCS & Lines’ servers;
•MPS periodically sends invoice to ICD Terminal;
•ICD Terminal makes online payment.
FULL EXPORT RECEPTION
•Shipping line sends EDI message to MPS the containers’ bookings;
•Clearing Agent processes release with Shipping Lines, Customs and other statutory bodies;
•MPS will automatically receive the releases of BoE from GICCS;
•Registered Clearing Agents may log on to MPS Web Portal;
o Request/Create the container(s) invoice online;
o Make payment online;
o Book a truck Entry Permit online & send Truck(s) to MPS;
•MPS will off load container(s) and issue Waybill/EIR at Gating-out;
•MPS TOS will transmit EDI to the GICCS & Lines servers.
EMPTY EXPORT RECEPTION
•Shipping Agent/Line transmits standard EDI file which is automatically uploaded in MPS TOS;
•ICD or Transport Company sends trucks with empty container(s) to MPS;
•After Gate-in and off-load, MPS TOS will transmit EDI to the GICCS & Lines servers;
•MPS sends electronic invoice to the Shipping Agent/Line;
•Shipping Agent/Line makes electronic payment to MPS.
THE BEST IS GETTING BETTER
Meridian Ports Services has contributed to GPHA’s Master Plan with the Container Terminal inside Tema Port and now the Tema Port Expansion Project. In the new Tema Port Facility, MPS will bring a hoist of cutting-edge solutions to its customers and will operate one-stop-shop on the new common-user facility and logistics platform.
