Harbour Master
Harbour Masters
Worldwide there are approximately 3,000 merchant ports and the work of the Harbour Master can vary widely from country to country and from port to port even within the same country.

The 8th IHMA Congress in Cork will explore and address the changing landscape of ports and how these changes are redefining the role of harbour masters in the future. Addressing the theme, "Marine experience: Can we manage tomorrow's port without it?" the 2012 IHMA Congress will showcase technical and operational breakthroughs together with international case studies on the development and management of modern port and marine operations across the globe.
The Congress runs from the 14th to the 18th of May and takes in some fantastic learning and networking opportunities. From the traditional welcomes and first session on the role of the Harbour Master in port management and development to the closing site tour with lunch at Jameson Heritage Centre it promises to be a fantastic week.
The Congress will address the following key issues:
The role of the Harbour Master in port management and development
The legal powers of the Harbour Master in new commercial landscape
Managing the decline of nautical expertise in shipping and the port industry
Port performance, port competition and the Harbour Master
International harmonisation of port rules, regulations and procedures
Cost cutting, efficient and safe operations in tomorrow's port
Programme;
Monday 14th May 2012, 08.00-17.30 1st congress day
Monday 14th May 2012, 18.00 Congress Welcome Reception
Tuesday 15th May 2012, 08.30-17.10 2nd congress day
Tuesday 15th May 2012, 17.30 Exhibition Networking Drinks
Wednesday 16th May 2012, 08.30-17.10 3d congess day
Wednesday 16th May 2012, 17.10 Launch of the revised edition of The Work of the Harbour Master
Wednesday 16th May 2012, 19.00 Official Congress Dinner
Thursday 17th May 2012, 08.30-10.40 4th congress day
Thursday 17th May 2012, 11.10-16.00 IHMA OGM
Thursday 17th May 2012, 16.30-18.00 Combined IHMA ExCo / Council meeting
Friday 18th May 2012, 09.00-14.30 Technical Site Tour
During the build up to the event a number of key speakers and IHMA members have been interviewed by the Congress team;
Capt. Kevin Richardson highlighted the importance of the role of Harbour Masters to the marine industry as a whole and how they play a pivotal role in keeping the worlds’ trade gateways moving.
His motto was "Keep it moving….. but keep it safe!" as the Harbour Master tirelessly works to balance the delicate equilibrium between demand and uplift. “Get it wrong and there are either huge shipping delays or huge terminal traffic delays and probably both.”
Most recently the Chief Harbour Master of the River Thames, Cmdr. David Phillips also spoke on the equilibrium that needs to be struck between the many user groups that utilize one of the UK’s key waterways, especially in such a busy year for London and the Thames.
These insights are just a taster as to what will be covered during the Congress week. The IHMA looks forward to welcoming you all to Cork in May.
North Sea Port has indicated that 54% of goods transported to the hinterland are moved by inland waterway shipping. This is the outcome of a study conducted by the port among companies throughout the port area and published on 28 November.
As a multimodal port, North Sea Port will increasingly be focusing on sustainable transport in the future, it is reported.
North Sea Port conducted research into the various transport options used by companies to move goods to the hinterland. This revealed that 54% of goods are transported by means of inland waterway shipping. 30% is loaded into lorries, whilst 9% is transported by rail. Transhipping cargo from one vessel to another accounts for 7%.
Results of this study were explained during North Sea Port’s multimodal event. At an Intermodal Marketplace, shippers and logistics intermediaries were able to find out about the rapidly expanding range of services provided by terminals and shipping companies in the port. These parties offer regular services from North Sea Port with destinations such as Antwerp, Rotterdam, Zeebrugge, Scandinavia, Spain, Italy, Great Britain, China, West Africa and South America by sea (deep-sea and short-sea), rail and inland waterway shipping.
DFDS is now using the new ro-ro ship Hollandia Seaways on the route between North Sea Port Ghent and Gothenburg in Sweden.
On 5 December, DFDS’s largest ship was officially named at the Mercatordok Multimodal Terminal in Ghent, North Sea Port.
The purpose of North Sea Port is to manage, operate and develop the 60 kilometres long cross-border port area from the Dutch port of Vlissingen to Ghent in Flanders. Within this framework, it intends to strengthen the position of the port and industrial complex in the area, both in a national and in an international perspective. North Sea Port employs 250 staff.
Hollandia Seaways can carry 450 trailers, representing a cargo capacity of 6,700 line metres. It has a length overall of 237.4 metres. With an extra floor for trailers, this new ship will immediately catch the eye when in the lock in Terneuzen or on the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal. The vessel is not only larger than the three DFDS ships which currently sail between Ghent and Gothenburg six times a week, it will be by far the largest ship in the entire DFDS fleet. This larger vessel will take the place of one of the three existing ships on the route. As a result, capacity will increase by some 600 trailers per week.
Join the world’s premier professional body for harbour masters and receive up-to-date information on the industry and access to the members' area of the website.
Pharetra lectus vitae elit sollicitudin, ut commodo tellus dapibus. Sed pellentesque quis enim faucibus laoreet. Aliquam eleifend sagittis augue, pellentesque purus.