Brazil's Port of Itajai reopened for large container vessels

The port of Itajai in Brazil is once again open to large container vessels after its sudden silting two years ago by flash floods. The port authority was forced to reduce the size and draught of vessels that could enter the port, which hit the port’s revenue severely , especially at a time when the world’s shipping economy was experiencing a severe downturn in trade. Following one of the largest surveying and dredging operations in Brazil, the port is looking to recapture demand.

However, problems had impacted not just the physical environment but also the ‘human factors’ within the port, so in order to refresh the pilots’ ship handling knowledge and experience of large containerships the port authority commissioned a marine simulator workshop at the port’s offices in Brazil.

The workshop provided the pilots with a simulated model of a 290m container vessel which had been fully validated against previous ship trials data. The Port of Itajai was recreated in BMT Argoss’ PC Rembrandt simulator using the standard British Admiralty chart and the port’s latest bathymetry and hydrodynamic data, incorporated from information gained through the Coastal Planning and Engineering of Brazil (CPE Brasil) recent surveying work.
(Source:www.portstrategy.com)