{"id":1018,"date":"2016-09-21T16:39:08","date_gmt":"2016-09-21T21:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/aapaseaports.naymicrosite2.wpengine.com\/?p=1018"},"modified":"2020-04-23T08:04:18","modified_gmt":"2020-04-23T13:04:18","slug":"cruise-port-productivity-upgrading-infrastructure-for-a-growing-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/2016\/09\/21\/cruise-port-productivity-upgrading-infrastructure-for-a-growing-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"Cruise Port Productivity: Upgrading Infrastructure for a Growing Industry"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cruise Port Productivity:\u00a0Upgrading Infrastructure for a Growing Industry<\/strong><\/p>\n

By Steve Cutler<\/em><\/p>\n

The cruise industry is growing rapidly, adding new excursions with increasing frequency, building new ships with designs that make some terminals\u2019 existing infrastructure obsolete, and launching mega-ships with incredible capacity.<\/p>\n

The challenge for cruise ports to become increasingly productive in order to capture their share of the expanding market is never ending, requiring constant upgrades to the infrastructure of their terminals and employing innovative methods of processing passengers.<\/p>\n

Measuring Productivity<\/strong><\/p>\n

Even while a cruise ship\u2019s contents \u2014 people \u2014 are more precious, in some ways productivity is measured by the same standard in cruise ports as in cargo ports \u2014 how expeditiously they can move their contents in and out of the terminal.<\/p>\n

\u201cLike in the cargo world, time is money,\u201d says Tom Spina, director of business development at the Carnival Corporation. The port\u2019s success depends on its ability to get cruise ships in and out of port within eight hours or so, by 4 or 5 p.m. at the latest. \u201cAfter 5 in the afternoon,\u201d says Spina, \u201cyou are paying time-and-a-half [to the ship\u2019s ground crew]and a meal hour.\u201d<\/p>\n

The miraculous, if routine, task of disembarking a shipload of, say, 3,000 or more passengers and then checking in the same number for the next excursion, all within eight hours, \u201cis all about the infrastructure that is there at the port,\u201d says Spina.<\/p>\n

How does the port estimate the productivity they must realize to keep up with the needs of the cruise market? \u201cReally, the clients measure productivity,\u201d says Capt. John Murray, CEO of Port Canaveral, the second busiest cruise port in the world in multi-day embarkations. \u201cWe work very closely with the cruise line. They know their ships and what their productivity needs to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPort Canaveral\u2019s growth has been amazing,\u201d says David Candib, Vice President, Development and Operations at Carnival Corporation, which homeports three of its vessels there. \u201cWe [as an industry]tell them we are building additional ships and want to homeport them there, then they find a way to get the infrastructure work done to accommodate our growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

Port Canaveral just completed a nearly $50 million renovation of terminal 5, one of its six terminals, and is in the process of upgrading terminal 10. \u201cTerminal 5 and 10 were built in the early \u201990s,\u201d says Capt. Murray, \u201cwhen 2,500 passengers was huge. Now we\u2019ve got ships that hold 4,000-plus passengers with almost twice as many bags and suitcases. We need more laydown area for the bags, more check-in desks, custom signs and security lanes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Terminal 5 can handle ships with up to 4,000 passengers. Its primary user will be Carnival Cruise Line, which homeports the Carnival Valor, Victory and Magic at Canaveral. Improvements included a 1,044-space parking garage, 120-foot pier extension and new passenger boarding bridges.<\/p>\n

Renovating for Maximum Efficiency<\/strong><\/p>\n

The primary purpose of the cruise port operation is to deliver passengers as efficiently as possible to the stevedores and cruise ship crew who handle check-in and embarkation. This entails receiving passengers\u2019 vehicles if they arrive by car, relieving them of their luggage and moving them through security and customs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are constantly looking for ways to streamline and layout the interiors of our terminals to separate passengers from their luggage so they don\u2019t have to lug or tote large parcels around while trying to make their paperwork available for security,\u201d says Don Allee, cruise port director of the Port of New Orleans, which has been investing tens of millions of dollars in infrastructure improvements.<\/p>\n

Port of New Orleans recently added 150 chairs, more embarkation counters, additional X-ray and screening machines, state-of-the-art electronic wayfinding stations and tripled the size of the Captain\u2019s Lounge at the Erato Street Terminal to keep passengers comfortable and happy while they waiting to board their ship.<\/p>\n

Go With the Flow<\/strong><\/p>\n

The key to efficiency is maintaining a steady pace. \u201cWe want to see a steady flow of embarking passengers,\u201d says Spina. \u201cYou don\u2019t want mad rushes because it creates lines at security and check-in.\u201d<\/p>\n

While serving as director of cruise operations for the New York City Economic Corporation, which runs the city\u2019s ports, Spina recalls working on a major renovation aimed at relieving bottlenecks at the Manhattan Terminal \u2014 \u201cprobably the least ideal place to load 5,000 people on and off,\u201d he says. \u201cWe changed the entire roadway flow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prior to the renovation, incoming passengers drove up to the terminal, dropped off their luggage, drove to the parking lot, parked their car and then finally walked into the terminal \u2014 waiting in lines every step of the way. All this time, \u201cthey were supposed to be on the ship enjoying their first margarita,\u201d says Spina. By the time they got on board, he quips, \u201cthey were drinking just to take the edge off.\u201d<\/p>\n

The solution was simple, if not cheap or easy. No construction in New York City is. They redirected the passenger car vehicle flow to the parking lot at the top of the terminal with a ramp going up to it, so passengers would park first and then make their way to the terminal. \u201cRedirecting the flow of traffic really eased the congestion and saved time,\u201d says Spina.<\/p>\n

Embracing New Technology<\/strong><\/p>\n

Port authorities and cruise ships companies both are embracing new technologies in order to increase productivity.<\/p>\n

Automated parking systems are the new standard. Utilizing express-pass-type transponders, the systems allow incoming cars and buses to enter the terminal without stopping. As for streamlining check-in, \u201cOne of the biggest advancements is online check-in,\u201d says Candib, which allows passengers to print their boarding passes and luggage tags at home. Or they might download their boarding pass to their smartphone.<\/p>\n

In another new program pioneered by the airlines, cruise lines are offering early boarding. Carnival\u2019s \u201cFaster to Fun\u201d program is an example. Some terminals, like Royal Caribbean\u2019s at PortMiami, intend to offer digital luggage tracking to allow passengers to follow the location of their bags on their smartphones.<\/p>\n

On the infrastructure level, an increasing number of ports are offering shoreside power, which allows ships to turn off their diesel engines and take their electricity from the port\u2019s grid, saving fuel and curtailing emissions while in port.<\/p>\n

Another valuable amenity ports can provide is sewage disposal. \u201cThe management of gray and blackwater for cruise ships is a problem,\u201d according to Yves Gilson, director of marketing and cruises for the Montr\u00e9al Port Authority. \u201cYou can\u2019t unload while you are at sea \u2014 there are rules you have to respect \u2014 and once you are in a port you have to pay a lot of money to get a company that will get your gray and blackwater treated. That is the reason our new cruise terminal will offer the possibility of discharging the gray and blackwater to a collector.\u201d<\/p>\n

New technology such as ultra-sophisticated global positioning systems on board ships has made sailing to port possible under conditions that would have kept them locked at sea not long ago. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen conditions where the river is completely closed to marine traffic, where the fog is thicker than pea soup,\u201d says Allee \u2014 \u201cand then here comes a cruise ship into port.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dawn of the Mega-Ship<\/strong><\/p>\n

Another new trend testing the capacity of cruise ports is the ever-increasing size of the ships being launched today. Every seven days, for example, in its 12-hour turnaround day, the Oasis of the Seas, one of Royal Caribbean\u2019s mega-ships, offloads some 6,000 passengers and up to 12,000 pieces of luggage and then receives another 6,000. The ship is 237 feet high and its beam is about 220 feet. As of this fall, Ocean of the Sea will be homeported at Port Canaveral, one of few ports, including Port Everglades and PortMiami, that can accommodate a vessel that size.<\/p>\n

Royal Caribbean\u2019s newest and biggest ship, Harmony of the Seas, can accommodate 6,410 passengers at maximum capacity. The Harmony, which is homeported in Port Everglades, and its sisters Oasis of the Seas and Anthem of the Seas, are in a class by themselves, but the trend toward increasingly large vessels is here to stay.<\/p>\n

Responding to the trend, Port of New Orleans, in a $23 million reconstruction of its Julia Street Terminal, converted two separate terminals into one large one. According to Johnny Cefalu, deputy director of the cruise port, \u201cRoyal Caribbean at that time was scheduled to bring in Voyager-class vessels [with 3,000-plus capacity], so we saw a need to interlock them together to make them one mega-terminal.\u201d<\/p>\n

To accommodate the increase in the number of passengers the renovation also included a much larger, 21,000-square-foot baggage laydown area, an expansive embarkation lobby and a vertical circulation core with elevators and escalators leading to the passenger bridge.<\/p>\n

The larger ships come with design changes that demand infrastructure upgrades in many ports. \u201cWhere the lifeboats used to be nestled into the shell of the ship, they are now outside the ship to create more space for cabins,\u201d explains Spina. \u201cWith that comes a whole host of new issues for ports.\u201d The old-style boarding bridges cannot reach the small space underneath the lifeboats to take passengers off the ship. \u201cThe infrastructure improvements in the passenger boarding bridges are important,\u201d says Spina.<\/p>\n

Most ports are listening, and installing new boarding bridges. The delivery of a new boarding bridge nearly derailed Canaveral\u2019s ultra-tight construction schedule on Terminal 5. \u201cWe had a very aggressive timeline and I think we missed it by one week,\u201d recalls Capt. Murray, \u201cand that was not due to something within our control.\u201d The ship delivering the last piece of the gangway from Spain arrived about 10 days late. Juggling terminals for the Carnival vessel in port, says Capt. Murray, \u201cwe found a way to make up that time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Staying Productive in the Off-Season<\/strong><\/p>\n

Because most ports, with the exception of those in Florida, are in full swing only six months of the year or less, many port authorities are looking at ways to repurpose their terminals for the off-season.<\/p>\n

\u201cMontr\u00e9al is seasonal,\u201d says Gilson. \u201dWe start in May and we end October. So when you have an infrastructure that is used only five months of the year you don\u2019t make a lot of money out of it. The rest of the year we rent the facilities for conferences, exhibits and meetings to generate revenue.\u201d<\/p>\n

The port is in the midst of a $78 million renovation of its 100-year-old Alexandra Pier and Iberville Passenger Terminal. The project is scheduled for completion in time for the 2017 cruise season and gala celebration of the city\u2019s 375th anniversary, \u201cwhich is going to be a ball, a big party from January 1, 2017 till December 31,\u201d says Gilson. The remodeling will allow the terminal to handle more passengers more efficiently during cruise season and provide expanded facilities for events in the off-season.<\/p>\n

Port of Montr\u00e9al is marketing the new facility for events now. \u201cWe are very well located in the heart of the Old Montr\u00e9al,\u201d says Gilson, \u201cso the view is beautiful and that will attract a lot of interest from the business community and people who want to organize events in Old Montr\u00e9al.\u201d<\/p>\n

At Port of New Orleans, according to Allee, \u201cwe\u2019ve looked at other uses for the terminals off-season, but we are pretty selective.\u201d When they do loan out the terminal, \u201cwe try to do things that have a maritime application.\u201d They\u2019ve hosted a job fair with a focus on the maritime community. Plus, \u201cwe had what we call a \u2018tabletop security exercise,\u2019 with state, federal and local law enforcement\u201d \u2014 a full-scale security exercise.<\/p>\n

Still, Port of New Orleans is considering opening to a wider audience at the new Poland Avenue Terminal, to be constructed at the port at a cost of some $50 million. \u201cThrough good engineering and architecture,\u201d says Allee, \u201cwe are considering how we can configure it to accommodate special events and create a revenue stream there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of course, the primary business of this or any cruise port will always be to provide efficient boarding for ships in port, and to make the passenger experience as stress-free as possible. And considering the dramatic growth projected for the cruise industry, to handle the increasing demand and stay competitive, says Allee, \u201cif you are not looking five to 10 years down the road \u2014 constantly looking at ways to improve the passenger experience \u2014 you\u2019re not doing your due diligence.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Good Problem to Have<\/strong><\/p>\n

The State of the Cruise Industry Outlook published at the end of 2015 by the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) projected that more than 24 million passengers will take sail in 2016 globally, up from 10 million in 2006 and from a mere 1.4 million in 1980, when CLIA began tracking cruise ship passengers.<\/p>\n

\u201cCruise industry executives say that demand for new vessels will outpace delivery,\u201d said the South Florida Business Journal, reporting on a State of the Global Cruise Industry panel at the Seatrade Cruise Global conference March 2016 featuring CEOs of the top cruise lines, including Carnival, Norwegian and Royal Caribbean.<\/p>\n

And, the panel concluded, \u201cThere aren\u2019t enough shipyards to meet demand for new cruise ships.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cruise Port Productivity:\u00a0Upgrading Infrastructure for a Growing Industry By Steve Cutler The cruise industry is growing rapidly, adding new excursions with increasing frequency, building new ships with designs that make some terminals\u2019 existing infrastructure obsolete, and launching mega-ships with incredible capacity. The challenge for cruise ports to become increasingly productive in order to capture their …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":1022,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,441],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1018","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-infrastructure"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1018","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1018"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1018\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aapaseaports.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}