Holding a poised stance during the global economic crisis will most likely be one of, if not the most, difficult hurdle industry stakeholders may ever encounter. As a result, cloud solutions, along with an array of other technologies, have presented grappling businesses with an opportunity to continue operating and develop some form of control over the operations – a rarity these days. Given the quick pace of change in combination with a lack of cloud expertise, experiencing cybersecurity threats and migration delays occur as a strong likelihood. The number of ports and terminals turning to cloud strategies has risen, but in an act to quickly alleviate the impacts of the virus, a rushed job can create more harm than good.

A lack of proper training and cloud security talent highlights the skills gap between cloud service IT professionals and general IT skills inherent in companies. The general approach is to manage all hardware and resources independently, and hence, opt for Infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) to run their relevant Software-as-a-service (SaaS). Consequently, businesses have a dual responsibility to manage and maintain both services, overcomplicating their countermeasure. Instead, companies simply should be operating purely as a SaaS to develop and leave system infrastructure maintenance to the cloud provider’s cloud specialists. Therefore, with workloads streamlined, operational expenses inevitably decrease, respectively.

Undoubtedly, the global crisis has accelerated technological acceptance, even in the most conservative industries. However, some are still not ready to fully embrace and entrust in what native-cloud systems have to offer. A common misconception reveals companies making projects more complicated than needed and without the correct pool of expertise, creates a system vulnerable to many threats. Traditional IT security skills are vital, but not sufficient to battle data breaches in real-time.

Furthermore, the cloud talent gap inflicts a costly outcome as it is more likely to delay cloud migrations by two years or even more. Consequently, expenses increase, which completely contradicts what cloud-native applications have to offer. Another alarming figure reflected in Gartner’s analysis, predicts through 2023, 99% of cloud security failures will be the customer’s fault. It is a massive wake-up call; a warning that timeliness goes hand in hand with responsibility.

Although it is a substantial move forward in both the digital and business landscape, many things can go wrong with deploying strategies at high speeds. Security threats, data breaches, and expenses exceeding planned budgets would be a direct result of poor planning compromising diligence. Therefore, avoiding project failures require executives to determine the business requirements and filter out what is not needed. Simply put, the lesson to cultivate is to plan, research, evaluate, and re-evaluate.

RBS enters the new year with a milestone marking our 30th anniversary in operation. Since founded in 1991, we have been humbled by the many valuable opportunities that allow us to connect with fantastic operators and container terminals across the globe.

We have also witnessed a great deal of change in the last three decades since the industry has endured several technology landscapes shifts, fluctuating economies, and evolving standards. Being present and involved in these changes attribute to our expanding knowledge as we are inspired to innovate further and strengthen our partnerships. As a result, RBS has developed unique products over the years, which offer a holistic solution driving innovation and efficiency for our clients. Rolling out the first real-time TOS on the market, achieving powerful automation tools, and followed by developing the first true cloud TOS are few of the most noteworthy achievements over the years.

Our achievements reflect the dedicated efforts of our founder, Harry Nguyen, and developers which continue to push boundaries and nurture ideas that facilitate, streamline, and develop better prospects for our clients. As a company, we have learned a great deal and are devoted to cultivating RBS’s vision of offering guidance that prepares terminal operators alike for uncertainty and a better future.

We thank all our clients for their loyal support and choosing us as your TOS provider – it would not have been possible without you!

The airline industry has confronted a plethora of challenges since the onset of the global pandemic, even declaring airline bankruptcies. In a new world living abreast the virus combined with travel restrictions, industries must adapt and adjust to new conditions if they intend to stay afloat. With that in mind, airplanes are now converting passenger seats into space to carry cargo across seas as a response to the increase of air cargo demand.

The sudden upsurge for urgent cargo deliveries, particularly for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) has salvaged the dwindling airline industry. However, this brings attention to the question – will air freight surpass sea freight?

Although supply chain channels are shifting to accommodate the new norms for logistics, shipping freight will remain as the predominant cargo transport source. Naturally, sea freight takes longer to move goods, but it allows the transport of substantially higher container volumes, achieving economies of scale. Furthermore, depending on the nature of the goods such as general cargo or livestock, the only form of transport is via vessels.

Depending on what customers value, whether it is time or reliability, which contribute to the overall customer satisfaction, then choosing an air freight service will be the viable mode of transport. In contrast, if price and load capacity is the top objective, then shipping poses as a more cost-effective alternative. Undoubtedly, global logistics is changing and will continue to experience shifts as it tries to establish a stable activity stream.

The world has endured a series of disruptive events, and the pandemic has taught valuable lessons that warrant permanent changes in the business landscape. Powerful technologies like cloud applications have become one of the most prominent forces driving business continuity which enable remote work and e-commerce. 

Active approaches regarding the nature of cloud applications driving business continuity have taken an uprise – instilling a glimmer of hope and confidence in the uncertain economy. Employing a Terminal Operating System (TOS) which inherits pure cloud characteristics, has made large-scale remote work possible. As a result, virtual environments have fended off staff layoffs and even help employees cut on expenses typically invested in commuting, laundry, eating out etc. Native-cloud applications award a dual benefit for employers as well, as they can continue to commit and secure supply chains. However, working from home, let alone, adopting a true cloud TOS is still a very new concept in the maritime and container industry. Aside from the most obvious advantage of a true cloud TOS offering work from anywhere at any time, it has fueled business survival by highlighting new and more efficient routes to working. 

Cloud computing has taken prevalence in most sectors as companies across the globe leverage its capabilities to navigate through uncharted waters and progress forward. A breakdown of ways it has developed a better alternative for conducting business involves:

• Shortening the project lifecycle

The timeframe of business remodelling from initiation stages to closure typically concludes over six to eight months. However, given the pandemic enforcing several challenges upon businesses, COVID-19 proved enterprises can pivot with accelerated speeds and adapt to changes over just a matter of weeks. It has challenged numerous leaders to re-evaluate their workflows and think about the speed of adjustment to save on their project budget.

Businesses with established cloud infrastructures supporting a smaller scale of remote work were able to transition into a larger scale with more ease compared to companies which lacked the facilities to accommodate the unprecedented changes. As a result, there is a more substantial focus on automating processes and inducing agility in processes by going cloud. 

• Communication

Accessing data in real-time is equally vital as maintaining information flow between all layers of management. Operational transparency and visibility go hand in hand with communication. Cloud tools like Zoom and Microsoft Teams have emerged to facilitate meetings and conferences in a period where face-to-face interaction is considered dangerous. In a bid to move forward and ensure communication channels strengthen operational visibility, terminal executives need to employ software infrastructures that are purely in the cloud.

• Learning to predict the future

An established cloud infrastructure presents a foundation for proactivity – a massive benefactor in this rapidly changing environment. If manufacturers, ports, and terminals alike knew about shortages in PPE and spike in blanked sailings, would they have increased production in advance to meet demands? Operating on the cloud can offer powerful benefits due to its ability to process external data such as news feeds from multiple countries and analyse trends on a real-time basis. Pure real-time data will facilitate a dynamic response to significant events in the future and overall better decision-making.

• Facilitating long-term outcomes

Thousands of businesses that once relied on direct face-to-face sales or methods of operating have now invested in building a cloud platform. Realizing the advantages of working from home and extending reach to a worldwide audience has convinced industries to evolve into e-commerce businesses. As a result of employing cloud-native applications to power e-commerce and typical operations, it will help drive a significant rate of sales going forward. The container handling industry and maritime industry have experienced a considerable reformation in the past few months as evaluative factors now prioritize agility, cost-efficiency, environmentally sustainable, responsive to change, etc.

The world has experienced the highest level of change since the global economic crisis. At the same time, resilience and perseverance performed in the initial stages of the crisis played a tribute to the quality of the organization. So far, we have seen businesses achieve incredible outcomes, reinforced in their ability to adopt innovative technologies quickly, and leverage its power.

A key takeaway of staying viable in this continually changing environment requires businesses practising agility and being swift when reacting to unanticipated circumstances. Therefore, having the cloud foundation as a platform of stability builds confidence in the ability that we will have to continue to meet challenges, now and in the future.

“Indonesia to become a digital powerhouse in Southeast Asia” – Tim Synan, head of Google Cloud Southeast Asia.

One of the largest cloud providers in the market, Google Cloud, launched late June in Indonesia. The tech giant will develop its base for cloud computing in Jakarta to accommodate the country’s stark rise in the use of digital technology. The move is a significant step forward into the fourth industrial revolution, creating the massive potential for economic growth and digital innovation for businesses who previously did not have the opportunity to do so.

“A lack of local cloud infrastructure has been a traditional barrier to cloud adoption in Indonesia, but we’re changing that with the launch of our Jakarta cloud region,” admits Rick Harshman, managing director of the Asia Pacific and Japan at Google Cloud. 

Late adopters of disruptive technology will finally have access and use this platform to globalize their business. RBS sees this news as an incredible movement drawing us closer to achieving our overall vision for marine terminals. Continuous knowledge sharing with our customers has proven a cloud-based TOS is the first step to creating astronomic growth for this industry. With the cloud making a breakthrough in Asia, TOPS cloud will empower enormous reductions in expenses so terminal operators will achieve maximum value in operational and financial aspects. Securing this future-proof strategy will set your terminal, regardless of size or container throughput, ahead of your peers.

Several terminals worldwide have become bankrupt due to a lack of or from refusing technological advancements. A cloud TOS is the best means for a market exposed to constant changing conditions since upscaling, or new system integrations will be an extended module of TOPS TOS Cloud. Terminals with an on-premise solution are more than ever at risk of becoming inept at innovation if they do not consider moving their IT infrastructure into the cloud. There is nothing better than knowing that you will not only survive a wave of growing competition but thrive

The likelihood of returning to former business practices grows more elusive as the pandemic proceeds to strain consumer behaviour. At least until a vaccine develops, online commerce will subsist as one of the most significant drivers of the global economy. Meanwhile, business models which rely on offering services must proactively adapt to changing markets and new government regulations. As a result, many affected industry stakeholders have converged with innovative technologies like cloud solutions.

Service-oriented businesses bear the most impact due to the nature of operations which cannot transform into a digital workspace. Consequently, the ongoing crisis exposes deep flaws embedded in rigid system infrastructures which require reconfiguring to ensure business continuity. Supply chain visibility and operational transparency have crumbled at the weight of the pandemic, creating congestion and bottlenecks at a rate unforeseen. Consequently, ports and terminals operating under an inflexible Terminal Operating System (TOS) may have encountered warehouse clogs, disorderly truck management, limited yard space, and exhausted more resources than anticipated. Therefore, a new mindset embracing technologies is critical for this day and age, especially moving forward.

During this unprecedented period, cloud solutions combined with the internet have proven to be the most exceptional facilitator, allowing both operations and individuals to continue communicating and working. Video conferencing, as well as collaboration tools, have paved a new avenue which may transcend well into the future and become standard business practices to save on resources and free up capital spent on travel. Two-thirds of respondents participating in Deloitte 2020 survey, continued working during the peak of the pandemic due to IT infrastructures supporting a virtual workforce. Similarly, expenses usually invested in commuting, clothes, and dry cleaning dramatically reduced, which built an employee appetite to proceed to work from home. Therefore, a TOS operating purely in the cloud can add substantial value and flexibility that is necessary for unpredictable times.

Cloud technology is also taking industry prevalence for increasing visibility within global supply chains. Economies spanning across nations are at risk of collapse amidst this pandemic, particularly with ports and terminals operating manually. Autonomy has been highly encouraged by governments to strengthen information and communication flow which has highlighted the cost-benefit and opportunistic functionality offered with a true cloud TOS. Information and communication are core business components and implementing a system governed on a cloud architecture will grant operators the flexibility to work from anywhere at any time, adhering to recent physical distancing restrictions on-premises.

The pandemic can prompt an entire restructure of the current framework employed in exercising global supply chain operations. The impacts of stalled shipments, blank sailings, staff layoffs, and overall plummet in consumer sentiments have shackled everyone involved in the supply chain. It has raised significant concerns for countries that predominantly rely on international trade, which may now need to consider diversifying their supply sources.

Earlier on during the outbreak, China enforced a nationwide lockdown that limited any form of movement. Inevitably being the behemoth for manufacturing, their exports could not depart on vessels since logistics halted to a standstill. Consequently, buyers can no longer receive their manufacturing goods or raw materials to continue the supply chain. The economic crisis further propelled a downturn in consumer behavior, which inherently lead container volumes to drop to historic lows. With all this in retrospect, it outlines the magnitude of the impacts that initiate a domino effect, reverberating into all operations and players involved in global trade. Due to the changing and unprecedented circumstances making existing processes inapplicable, businesses worldwide are now reassessing their dependence on China as their leading trade partner.

Some governments have encouraged localizing trade and moving manufacturing activity onshore as an alternative to mitigate the faltering flow of goods in case of a rise from another unprecedented event. The number of vessels downsizing to make shorter trips with fewer containers, as well as an increase in intermodal, freight, and truck activity, would be the likelihood if nations were to enact this pathway. Otherwise, materials and manufacturing will be spread across suppliers equally, diversifying the risks if all op the face of a player unable to supply the resources. Will we witness a manufacturing pivot as the pandemic develops a new era for the economy?