The true meaning of productivity

The Port of Tema shouldn’t, he suggests, be compared to Shanghai, but rather to Malabo or Dakar, for example. By the same token, levels of productivity reported by transhipment hubs mean little when comparing them with regional or local ports.

“There are no ‘generalised’ fixes available for those ports where productivity is not good. You first have to make a diagnosis of the problem, because there can be so many factors that contribute towards it. Once you identify these, then you can try to tackle them. But if poor productivity is endemic, I would assume that it would be down to poor port/terminal infrastructure and/or equipment, meaning that it is not easy to achieve a quick fix,” says Mr López.

Oliver Weinreich, general manager of Valparaiso box handling facility, Terminal Pacífico Sur, stops short of criticising terminals that have historic low levels of productivity, pointing out that it is difficult to make a judgement without first analysing the factors that might be impacting on a particular operation.

“However, in general, low productivity is a sign that there is something that needs looking into, thereafter a decision being made as to whether anything can or should be done to resolve it.”