When we think of the word “robot” invented and revealed to the planet by Karel Czapek in 1920, we usually see a robot humanoid, akin to C-3PO from “Star Wars”, or an industrial robot working on a assembly line in a car factory. Meanwhile, there are giant robots in the world, which have already overgrown Transformers and another mega-machines from SF films. These giant robots are modern robotic ports, which are increasingly emerging in China.
The first full automated Chinese container terminal was the 1 launched in 2017 in Qingdao. On the 1 hand, the accomplishment was celebrated, on the another hand, it was emphasized that the automated port operates solely on the basis of abroad technologies, especially IT ones.
After 6 years (2023) The Chinese have reported that they already have their own completely independent intelligent port management and control system. This was the occasion of the launch of the 3rd phase of the improvement of the Qianwan container terminal in Qingdao, mentioned just now. In December last year, China, which has the most automated container terminals in the world, had the ability to build its own container terminals production lines without any dependencies on abroad technologies or equipment.
In Qingdao port, all loading and unloading operations of containers are carried out by robotic cranes and autonomous truck platforms.
Containers are arranged on the wharfs by autonomous lifts and cranes, and those designed for rail transport, travel on kei on a port railway bus with an autonomous suspended monorail train.
The full complex strategy is controlled thanks to an highly fast data circulation, which allows a 5G network and the usage of fast analysis technology for large data sets. Devices and machines operating in the port communicate with each other, while the surveillance of their operations is carried out by a comparatively tiny squad of people working in the equivalent of the Control Room.
What's all this for? Above all, it is about port efficiency and efficiency. The strategy launched in Qingdao last December is loading 60 containers per ship within an hr by a single crane. For a man, a crane operator is simply a hard pace to obtain, and what is more, completely impossible to keep throughout the change.
The work of crane operators for container handling is considered the most stressful among porters' work.
One container ship sailing from China to the planet is 16 or even 24 1000 TEU (i.e. equivalents of 20-foot containers). Last year, 30 million TEUs were reloaded in Qingdao port. all second counts here.
There are already 18 automatic terminals in China and 27 are built or upgraded. The automation of further Chinese ports is only a substance of time. Among the 10 largest ports in the world, 7 are Chinese ports. The number 1 in the planet ranking for years has been a port in Shanghai. China is simply a mill of the world. They have the top production possible in the world, almost 5 times greater than the another in this category of the United States. China intends to increase its production capacity. This means bringing natural materials, importing them from another countries, another continents. China has expanded the world's largest natural material processing base. This base depends, for example, on the energy transformation promoted in the West.
China is developing highly intensive trade with the Global South. This besides requires increased port efficiency. China will most likely export its robot ports. Certainly, the solutions utilized and developed in Qingdao will appear in ports in many places around the planet where the Chinese government and Chinese companies have invested in port projects.
Such ports will constitute immense competition for ports that are based on technological changes. arabian states are curious in robotic ports. They want specified ports at home, they want to place them in African countries, where they increase their investment in industrial and transport infrastructure.
In the United States, only 4 ports at 350 have been automated. Despite the increasing failure of the ports there, there are no measures to introduce, at least gradually, automatic solutions, which have long been developed there. But in American realities, the decision to introduce robotics and automation in ports is simply a political suicide. Politicians of all options repeat there that "port robotics is the elimination of thousands of jobs".
In China, robotic ports will destruct many jobs. frequently hard and dangerous. But robotic ports require an army of people to keep a machinery park, its method supervision, repairs. We request competent mechanics, engineers, IT engineers. We request people working in factories and for container terminals factories. 1 change will lead to another change. Which is shortly enough.
Leszek B. Glass
Email: [email protected]
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