‘Port Community Systems and other private/public collaborative systems are the way forward and need to be incorporated into future methods of border management.’ Dr Alan Bersins, Assistant Secretary, US Department for Homeland Security – INCU Inaugural Conference, Baku, Azerbaijan, May 2014.

A PCS is an electronic platform which connects the multiple systems operated by a variety of organisations that make up a sea port or airport community. It is shared in the sense that it is set up, organised and used by firms in the same sector – in this case, a port community.

Port Community Systems can, and will, play a major role as countries move towards the Single Window environment; the members of IPCSA will be working together to provide expert opinion on proposed new regulation and contribute to the harmonisation and coordination of reporting formalities, processes and procedures.

PCSs in Europe have a long tradition. The first to be established in ports in Germany, France and UK began to operate in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Countries such as The Netherlands and Spain started their PCSs in the 1990s and around the turn of the century.

Key drivers for the establishment of Port Community Systems were, on the one hand, the need for a standardised communication platform to improve processes in terms of punctuality, reliability or costs and, on the other hand, the need to increase competitive position among ports.

A good collaboration with the key authorities, as well as with stakeholders, potential customers and local trade associations, was critical in the setting up of the respective PCSs which were – and still are – implemented by means of special training and workshops with the end users.

While target market areas differ widely in terms of existing IT infrastructure and functionality, it is arguable that where little or no automated processes are in place either at frontier, port or fiscal and regulatory level, the PCS is ideally placed to form the foundation or backbone of the Single Window vision.

The number of ports connected to a PCS varies from one to many. Smaller ports in particular often join forces to set up a PCS or connect to an already existing PCS of a larger port or ports. The types of Community Systems can also differ. We distinguish the following:

• Maritime, with specific focus on PCS for Small and Medium Ports
• Air
• Land

A PCS is a modular system with functionality designed to provide all the various sectors and players within a port community environment with the tools specific to them, thus delivering a tightly integrated system. Developed for port users by port users, a PCS encompasses exports, imports, transhipments, consolidations, hazardous cargo and maritime statistics reporting.

PCSs in general provide a huge range of services and key features which can be summarised as follows:

• Easy, fast and efficient EDI-based information exchange, re-use and centralisation, available 24/7/365.
• Customs declarations.
• Electronic handling of all information regarding import and export of containerised, general and bulk cargo.
• Status information and control, tracking and tracing through the whole logistics chain.
• Processing of dangerous goods.
• Processing of maritime and other statistics.

With all these services come many advantages. The core benefits for all parties involved are higher efficiency and speed regarding port processes, particularly through automation and the reduction of paperwork. In this way, PCSs contribute to sustainable transport logistics and support the ambitions to meet global carbon reduction targets.

The functionality aims to eliminate the unnecessary paperwork which can cause bottlenecks in cargo handling. Using electronic data exchange, the PCS is an effective real-time information system; fast, focused, flexible and multifaceted, it aims to improve efficiency at all stages of the process of manifesting, through vessel discharge and loading, Customs clearance, port health formalities and delivery in and out of the terminal.

As well as the above, a PCS offers improved security, cost reduction and potentially improved competitiveness for each user.