SYDNEY PORTS CORPORATION ANNUAL REPORT 12

POrT BOTANY LANDSIDE
IMPrOvEMENT STrATEGY
(PBLIS)
ThE PORT BOTANY lANDSIDE ImPROvEmENT STRATEgY (PBlIS) IS
gENERATINg EFFICIENCIES IN OPERATIONS BY ImPROvINg ROAD AND
RAIl TRANSPORT OF CONTAINERS ThROugh ThE PORT.
After its first 12 months of operation,
an independent review of PBLIS
was conducted by Deloitte Access
Economics in March 2012. The review
found that the Net Present Value of
PBLIS, between 2009 and 2018, is
expected to now be $57 million. That is
142 per cent more than they originally
estimated in 2009.
In the first year of PBLIS operation,
truck turnaround times improved by
30 per cent, compared to 2009 trial
data, to an average of 32 minutes a
vehicle. Around 95 per cent of trucks
now arrive within their allotted time,
up from the 72 per cent recorded in
the trials. Regulated penalties for slow
truck turnarounds and late arrivals,
which came into effect in February
2011, together with spreading arrivals
to off peak periods, have all helped
increase efficiency.
In March 2012, Sydney Ports
commissioned an independent
market researcher to conduct a survey
of road carriers which found that since
the establishment of PBLIS:
■■ 73 per cent of carriers reported an
improvement in truck queuing
■■ 72 per cent of respondents said
there was a substantial
improvement in the consistency
of the Port Botany supply chain
■■ 59 per cent of supply chain
participants reported an
improvement in their business
performance.
Late June 2012 saw the opening of the
Truck Marshalling Area (TMA) within
the Port precinct. The marshalling area
has capacity for up to 50 early-arriving
trucks to wait for their time-slot at the
terminals. It is a safe, secure aroundthe-clock
facility that includes
amenities for truck drivers. The TMA
is helping end the practice of trucks
queuing in front of the terminal gates,
creating congestion and blocking
those arriving on time for their slots.
Sydney Ports’ PBLIS team is working
closely with the Port Road Taskforce
and the Port Botany Rail Team to
coordinate road and rail supply
chain improvements. Both bodies
include representatives of industry
associations, road carriers or rail
operators, stevedores and Port
service providers.
The members of the Port Botany
Rail Team have voluntarily signed
off on a rail charter, agreeing to
establish a governance structure and
business rules for Port rail operations.
The charter has been lodged with
the Australian Competition and
Consumer Commission ahead of
seeking authorisation for the formal
agreement to the structure and rules.
This year, container rail transport
to and from the port rose to 261,212
Twenty Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs),
up 4.4 per cent on the previous year.
The revised Rail Pricing Regulation,
which came into effect on 1 September
2011, includes performance incentives
for both stevedores and rail operators.
The Regulation set a minimum
benchmark of 36 containers an hour
to be loaded or unloaded at the
stevedore rail sidings. During 2011/12,
rail productivity improved, with
stevedores meeting and exceeding
the 36 containers an hour benchmark.
faCt
95%
of trUCkS now arrive within
their aLLotted time.
Under PBLIS, the newly set up
Port Botany Rail Operations and
Coordination Centre (ROCC) will assist
in meeting the NSW Government’s
target of doubling the rail modal share
by 2020. The ROCC, operating on a
24 hour, seven day a week basis from
late 2012, will be responsible for
forecasting, planning and coordinating
the Port rail system.
Sydney Ports’ PBLIS initiatives
are substantial reforms, supported
by the NSW Government and
included in its NSW 2021 State Plan.
Stakeholders are already benefiting
from road and rail efficiencies and
greater advances will flow from the
continuous improvement focus and
implementation of PBLIS.
Sydney PortS CorPoration annUaL rePort 2011/12 21