Terminal automation – The latest innovations and developments in automation technology ...

Automation technology developers continually adapt to the tightening requirements for safety, security and environmental protection. But they're also delivering cutting edge solutions to meet the other key demands of terminal operators: data integration and connectivity.

Major market providers are seeking to fill these gaps with new products; and there is evidence that these issues will influence the sector in the years ahead, as large corporations reorganize their supply-chains for global operations, and demand more precise control of inventories.

Mark Olinger, head of corporate communications at Control Systems International (CSI), says that corporations managing bulk commodities are seeking to shorten supply chain reporting, and improve the accuracy and timeliness of information reaching their Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems.

"Organizations are faced with obtaining data from various disparate systems," he says. "Companies are realizing the true cost of isolated nonintegrated automation solutions. These islands of automation create roadblocks to the movement of real-time data, add to the cost of obtaining data, and increase the long-term cost of maintaining a supply-chain automation infrastructure."

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