As we prepare for the eighth edition of Smart Digital Ports of the Future (SDP 2024) in Rotterdam, we’ve had the pleasure of sitting down with some of our speakers. These conversations give us a closer look at their roles in the maritime industry and how they’re helping to drive its digital transformation.
We’re excited to share insights from Norbert Klettner, Vice-President of Terminal Industry Committee 4.0 (TIC4.0) as we get ready for the event!
Can you introduce yourself and describe your role within your company?
I am the Vice-President of Terminal Industry Committee 4.0 (TIC4.0), Managing Director at RBS EMEA and akquinet port consulting GmbH.
I have been a founding member of TIC4.0 since 2018 and currently serve as its Vice-President. I’m also a member of the Executive and Operation Councils of TIC4.0. My experience in combining process and IT roles, along with my involvement in the Terminal Industry Committee 4.0, provides me with a more holistic and data-driven perspective on operations, something increasingly essential in today’s industry.
What are the benefits of digitalisation at ports and where is this heading?
There are some key elements that can benefit ports with more digitalisation:
- More transparency on processes and performance that is automated data-driven and therefore more unbiased. Digital solutions can highlight processes and bottlenecks faster – if not in real time.
- Better possibilities to integrate with other players in logistics and supply chain. In the future, it will become increasingly important to have a digital understanding, and this shouldn’t mean having a standard to manage all and lock all into one framework, but standards that make data understandable by the involved parties and allow people to flexibly gain from the data. Essentially, a data language.
- The ability to think processes differently when moving forward into a digital age. This might help to unlock ways of doing things that have not been possible before. So it is less about making a current process digital and more about making the business digital and rethinking processes in new ways.
Why is attending SDP 2024 essential for you?
SDP is always a good way to understand the direction of the industry, how ports influence operations, and the crucial role of terminals.
Norbert Klettner is the Vice-President of Terminal Industry Committee 4.0 (TIC4.0) and Managing Director at RBS EMEA and akquinet port consulting GmbH. He has been working for more than 20 years in the port and terminal industry implementing and integrating Terminal Operating Systems (TOS), initially for the terminal operator EUROGATE. For over 15 years, he has served as the Managing Director at the RBS EMEA Office, overseeing the implementation of the RBS TOS system.
