Port of Hamburg readies for automated drones

HHLA Sky, a subsidiary of port and transport logistics company Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA), and the Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) have entered into a technology partnership.

Together, the companies want to make it possible to use automated drones within the Port of Hamburg.

As explained, the technology will assist in finding many promising solutions for logistical, sensory or coordinative processes.

“In the event of storm surges, accidents or other unforeseeable disruptions, flying, floating or self-driving robots can be on-site considerably faster and provide high-resolution videos and pictures for an exact overview of the situation. The time saved can be decisive in an emergency,” Jens Meier, Chairman of the Executive Board of the HPA, said.

“Furthermore, they make the maintenance and expansion of the port infrastructure significantly more efficient – for example, in the case of facilities that are difficult, time-consuming or dangerous to reach.”

HHLA Sky has a developed control centre for the operation and monitoring of drones, and has introduced it on the global market. It connects the various HPA applications within the scope of the technology partnership to streamline processes that were previously labour-intensive so that devices can be operated more efficiently.

“The next phase of product development for our new ‘drones as a service’ product will be launched with this partnership. We will begin pilot operations this year,” Phanthian Zuesongdham, Head of Division Port Process Solutions at the HPA, noted.

“Our solution will display and control all associated processes in a safe and understandable manner,” Matthias Gronstedt, Managing Director of HHLA Sky, added.

“Furthermore, the HPA is able to collect very different kinds of data using mobile teleoperated sensors. Analysing it helps us use resources optimally.”