PPA pushes ambitious automation drive
The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) is migrating to automated and mobile operations to become more responsive to the demands of global trade.
For starters, PPA is replacing all its desktop computers with state-of-the-art laptop computers for greater mobility and more environment-friendly energy consumption, the port authority said in a statement.
PPA General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago said the state-owned agency recently received at least a thousand brand-new IBM ThinkPad laptops that will be utilized in the central brain trust of the agency.
He added that all serviceable desktop computers will be transferred to PPA's Port Management Offices and Terminal Management Offices, guaranteeing a one-computer-to-oneemployee ratio for the agency.
"This computerization effort is all aimed at modernizing the entire PPA operations system that will translate to efficiency and effectivity at ports," Santiago explained.
"Aside from the computers, we are also in the process of installing modern scanners in all ports with high concentration of passengers to ensure safety and security of the public," Santiago added.
"We are targeting to complete the full migration to mobile operations in a year's time at least for the 16 hub ports under the PPA port system," Santiago said.
The agency currently is completing its electronic e-payment system in all the 115 PPA-controlled ports nationwide, and eventually migrating to full e-commerce operations before the end of the current administration.
This is also in line with the dream of the agency to be a completely QMS (Quality Management System) and ISO (International Organization for Standardization)-accredited and certified agency through this massive computerization and automation effort.
It is also part of the commitment of the new PPA administration when it took over the agency in July 2016 to transform the agency into a more dynamic, transparent, and serviceoriented government-owned and controlled corporation through reduced permitting process and documentation. This is on top of its campaign to infuse a culture of safety in port operations as well as cultivate a mindset of valueadded service in the different ports. All this is seen to lead to enhanced convenience for passengers as well as improved efficiency and productivity in cargo operations.
A decade ago, PPA implemented its first automation and modernization program called Providing Reliable Operation and Management of Ports thru Technology, or PROMPT, which includes an e-permit system and a port customer registration system. To date, PROMPT still serves as the platform of the PPA automated system. – www. portcalls.com