The head of Strategic Planning and Innovation of the PAV, Juan Manuel Díez, has participated in ACI’s Digitalised Smart Ports Conference in London.

He emphasised that “the Smart Ports are going to be the most sustainable, efficient and carbon-neutral ports”.

The head of Strategic Planning and Innovation of the Port Authority of Valencia (PAV), Juan Manuel Díez Orejas, has explained Valenciaport’s smart port project at the ACI’s Digitalised Smart Ports Conference held in London. Connectivity, efficiency and responsibility are the pillars on which the PAV’s strategy is based in order to position the València, Sagunto and Gandia port areas as benchmark ports in collaboration with the entire port community to improve the competitiveness and sustainability of their area of influence.

During his presentation, Juan Manuel Díez explained that Valenciaport has been working for years on the connectivity of the logistics chain through cooperation, information, artificial intelligence, transparency and cybersecurity with tools such as ValenciaportPCS, one of the first Port Community Systems in the world, which continues to be a key element of our competitiveness and which is shared by more than a thousand companies in the port community that operate with this technological platform.

About efficiency in operations, the Port of Valencia is developing a vision of the intermodal and synchromodal logistics chain, the automation of many processes and the optimisation of space. Likewise, the PAV’s Head of Strategic Planning and Innovation explained that “in these objectives as an intelligent port, our responsibility to citizens and society plays an essential role. Hence our commitment to zero emissions, the circular economy, integration with the territory, the blue economy and the fight against climate change.

More than 200 RDI projects

Díez Orejas pointed out at the ACI’s Digitalised Smart Ports Conference that the APV has developed more than 200 R+D+I projects in recent years, many of them focused on sustainability issues. “Innovation has helped us to grow as a port and, at the same time, to grow responsibly. The smarts ports will be the most sustainable, efficient and carbon-neutral enclosures, a fundamental commitment for Valenciaport and which is reflected in the initiatives we are carrying out in this regard”.

Thus, the head of Strategic Planning and Innovation of the PAV has explained to the participants in this conference projects such as the SuperLab Ports, a space of international projection designed and conceived for innovation and entrepreneurship in the maritime and port sector in the field of climate change, because of the collaboration with Climate-KIC Spain. He has also referred to the Ports 4.0 fund created by the Spanish port system to promote the promotion of entrepreneurship for innovation within the port sector.

The ACI’s Digitalised Smart Ports Conference has brought together senior executives and experts from the maritime industry, port authorities, consultants, technology innovators and leading market analysts to discuss the latest challenges and improvements within the port industry. In addition to the head of Strategic Planning and Innovation of the PAV, other participants included Raoul Tan, Digital Business Solutions of the Port of Rotterdam; Justin Atkin, UK and Ireland representative of the Port of Antwerp; Martin Male, Verizon Professional Services Business Partner; Dmitry Rostopshin, from the Finnish company Wärtsilä for maritime traffic control and management solutions; and Carles Rua, head of Strategy and Innovation of the Port of Barcelona.