Ports are the beating heart of the global economy. But historically they've also been one of the most dangerous work environments in the world. What if it was possible to take humans out of the port equation?
That is exactly what the Tianjin port facility in eastern China did by working with Huawei and China Mobile. Now, this port, one of the largest in the world, is running on 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud-controlled autonomous vehicles and more.
In this video, Stephen M Saunders MBE, founder of Silverlinings, tours the Tianjin port to find out how the company built out a private 5G network powerful enough to help track and manage more than 20 million shipping containers a year — and help more than 20,000 employees do their jobs in a safe and efficient way.
Watch the video or read the transcript below to learn more about the Tianjin port facility, and how it’s using private 5G and AI to transform its business.
Steve Saunders: Ports are the beating heart of the global economy. But historically they've also been one of the most dangerous work environments in the world. What if it was possible to take humans out of the port equation? Well, that's exactly what's happening here at this boss Tianjin port facility in eastern China.
Tianjin port is located in the western section of the Bohai Bay, connecting Northeast Asia with Central and Western Asia. It's the maritime gateway to Beijing and an important staging post on the Silk Road.
This is an absolutely huge site, one of the 10 largest ports in the world handling an extraordinary 20 million containers a year and employing more than 20,000 people.
In 2020, Tianjin port, Huawei and China Mobile jointly established a 5G+ smart port task force to work on automating the port's operations. Their big breakthrough was combining AI and 5G to support cloud-controlled autonomous driving at the facility.
Teng Zhang, General Office Supervisor, Tainjin Port: It took us one year and nine months from the start of construction to full operation. All of these machines have the ability to communicate with each other, and we have installed 12 5G base stations to enable that communication.
Saunders: Artificial intelligence is the key to allowing Tianjin port to deliver automation on an industrial scale. The massive electric powered vehicles here use AI to interpret and make speed and routing decisions based on data from onboard and networked sensors.
Tianjin port developed the system with its partners in less than two years and has had zero injuries since it was deployed.
Zhang: These automated container transport vehicles are able to control their own routes, and their electric charging schedules as well as giving them the ability to avoid obstacles. None of this can be achieved without the use of artificial intelligence.
Saunders: The same approach is taken to automating the operation of the ports, yard bridges and quayside bridges.
Those are controlled remotely from an intelligent dispatch center using high-definition video information and equipment status data transmitted by 5G. With this system, one operator can control up to eight bridges, rather than having to assign one worker to each.
Jon Arnold, Principal Analyst, J. Arnold & Associates: It's very impressive, not just because of the level of automation, but it’s the scale because most 5G implementations we see so far would be typically more enclosed spaces — like manufacturing, a hospital, retail warehouses, these kinds of settings. You've got 5G, which enables a lot of the connectivity that makes everything move and act, but you've also got the AI piece that makes it really really precise and intelligent. And when you watch all of these vehicles in motion at the same time, they're all autonomous in the way that they move, without any humans involved, I find it really one of the most impressive things.
Saunders: You might think that all this technology makes this a very expensive project, but you'd be wrong. Tianjin Port says the total cost of ownership is 30% less compared with traditional container terminals on the same coastline.
Arnold: It's green. To make this a green carbon neutral operation is one of those things you don't think about when you're automating a shipping port, but that's the vision that they're bringing to this. It's more than just a port terminal, it is the future of how we do things on a large scale in a sustainable way.
Saunders: The port here has achieved its goal of total automation. And from my visit here, one thing is absolutely clear one day all ports will be run this way.