Excerpts from the Journal of Commerce:
[T]erminal operators warned the almost 600 BCOs in attendance at TPM not to get too excited too soon about automation because it is hugely expensive. Also, terminal operators are waiting for the approximately 25 automated container terminals worldwide to achieve the level of productivity they were designed to reach.
Ed DeNike, chief operating officer at SSA Marine … noted that most of the terminals that have automated, even those in Europe that continue to refine the technology, have not achieved the productivity that conventional terminals receive from longshoremen. “Productivity trumps manning,” he said.
Dockworker productivity is especially important in operating the ship-to-shore cranes. DeNike said that each improvement of one container move per hour translates to a savings of $5 for the terminal. Therefore, if a terminal that handles 1 million lifts per year improves its productivity from 30 moves per crane per hour to 31 moves, it saves $5 million a year.