Most of us have read more about port congestion and supply chain woes in the past few weeks than ever before, and the multitude of problems do seem quite thorny. There are record numbers of shipping vessels waiting to be unloaded, there is a lack of available truck chassis to transport containers out of the ports, and the critical details around how to efficiently implement 24/7 port operation are still being hashed out.
 
A solution that has not received as much attention, however, is increasing the use of automation to assist longshoremen, truck drivers, dock workers, and others as they tirelessly work to deliver America’s goods. Automated technologies appropriate for this environment already exist, and in many places are already in use. For instance, the newest container terminal at the Port of Long Beach has installed remotely run electric cranes and a computer-controlled container stacking system. The ports at Rotterdam in the Netherlands and Melbourne in Australia are also examples of forward-thinking shipping hubs that have enjoyed greater efficiency due to advanced technology solutions.
 
Why aren’t we pursuing these technologies more fervently in America? Well, Congressional lack of buy-in is a major reason and in fact in the House of Representative’s Fiscal Year 2022 appropriations bill for the Department of Transportation, there is a proviso that refuses funding for port development if plans include the “purchase or installation of automated cargo handling equipment.”
 
Thank goodness the Senate doesn’t agree – that language is not included in the upper chamber’s appropriations bill, and we will work hard to ensure that proviso isn’t included in the final version of the legislation.
 
With supply chain woes threatening to disrupt Christmas and the winter holiday season, why wouldn’t Congress expend every effort to help American ports modernize?