Stevedoring

Whatever the cargo, Patrick Stevedoring can handle it.

As the largest and most experienced general stevedore in Australia, our RoRo and LoLo service capability to meet the needs of importers and exporters is second to none. And we intend to keep it that way.

Our committed staff views all cargo as precious. Meticulous attention to detail and specialist training combined with a wealth of expertise and experience ensures cargoes are handled both efficiently and with the utmost level of care. Workplace safety is top of mind and reflected in our outstanding safety record over recent years. And our stevedoring capacity to handle an already broad and increasing range of cargo remains unrivalled in this country.

We even cater for clients who require a limited extended service of Discharge from Vessel - Deliver to Consignee, thanks to the seamless coordination and co-operation of all members of the Auto, Bulk & General team.

If you need it, we can do it. That's the Patrick way.

Patrick Ports

Benefit from the Ports Team experience
Clients benefit every day from the vast experience our Ports management and operations teams provide.

We excel at the development, operation, maintenance and asset management of some of Australia's busiest bulk and general ports and related infrastructure, providing seamless, hassle-free integration of these facilities with associated supply chains. Our Bulk Ports expertise is unrivalled in Australia.

Grain:                          bulk - loading & discharge, infrastructure
Woodchips:                  bulk - loading, infrastructure
Other Bulk:                  fertiliser, fuels, chemicals, gypsum, bauxite, alumina, etc-loading & discharge.

Providing leading-edge logistics solutions that minimise risk and maximise value for all parties is key to our on-going success. This is achieved throughregular dialogue with customers, suppliers and key stakeholders, and a strong focus on innovation and risk management.

Ports has a history of industrial relations stability which has been achieved through prompt and direct consultation with employees and their representatives. This is enhanced through a strong commitment to safety, effective recruitment, the focused training of leaders and by giving site management the responsibility to lead their business.

World class facilities
Operating on exclusively leased facilities in Geelong, Western Port, Albany, Christmas Island, Geraldton and Melbourne, Patrick Ports provides extensive, world-class bulk port facilities to handle a range of bulk and specialist cargoes.

At all other ports, we operate on general cargo common-user wharves and maintain vast fleets of wheeled equipment and specialised handling/lifting solutions to suit any general or specialised cargo handling requirements our clients may have. If you need it and we don't already have it, we'll get it there.

Looking to the future
Patrick's growth strategy relies on our ability to continue to provide superior and valued service to customers. The Ports team achieves this through:

• the application and development of best practice asset management strategies;
• continued investment and innovation in infrastructure development and maintenance techniques;
• the rigorous pursuit of process & efficiency improvements including storage and stockpile management, material handling and transport logistics at Bulk Ports Australia-wide;
• "future-proofing" analysis of asset and infrastructure utilisation; and
• regular stakeholder engagement.

Constant innovation
Patrick has a proven track record of innovation in the ports sector.

An example of innovation is the development and implementation of the world leading Autostrad technology for driverless container straddles. Patrick was also the first customer in Australia to utilise the vacuum mooring systems for cargo ships. 

These systems replace traditional mooring lines with a wharf-mounted vacuum unit that secures a ship in less than 10 seconds.  The benefit of the unit is the greatly reduced times to tie up and depart, eliminating a significant safety risk and removing the need for mooring lines and crews. Recent trials and studies at Salalah port in the Middle East have shown a substantial reduction in ship movements during long period swells that affect that port, resulting in fewer broken lines and improved productivity.

In association with Flinders Ports, Ports is currently commissioning the first mobile snake loader in the world. This ship loader will enable a Panamax vessel to be loaded from a very narrow berth apron, which would not have been possible if a traditional approach to mobile ship loaders had been adopted.

In Geelong, Ports is investigating technologies that will automate the loading of woodchips, resulting in increased efficiencies (compaction and load rates), productivity improvements and the removal of the operator from exposure to dust and weather. Our on-going investment in best practice and environmentally responsible Bulk Ports methodologies ensures Patrick remains market leader in Australia. 

Ports also has an on-going commitment to employee professional development in pursuit of innovative solutions to both simple and complex challenges associated with moving bulk products across the water-land interface. Ports continues to develop its people and provide them the opportunity to be part of a successful, growing organisation where individuals are rewarded for personal effort and contribution. Each Ports business is operated as a devolved profit centre where the Business Manager has full accountability for all aspects of the business.

The operator-maintainer concept has been successfully adopted in both Geelong and Albany and will continue to be implemented at other ports.

Risk management
With a commitment to providing customer-focused solutions, Ports has adopted a program of constant consultation with customers, suppliers and key stakeholders to ensure the delivery of mutually beneficial outcomes.

Dialogue with customers is continuous through regular meetings and workshops to develop and refine the service delivery process. Detailed and thorough Risk Assessments, focused on safety, environmental and commercial factors, are undertaken for all proposed and existing operations.

Best practice management
A key efficiency for bulk handling operations is the analysis and identification of the safest and most efficient mode of material transport, storage and handling.

The analysis of the relative efficiencies of road, rail, conveying, storage and trans-shipment is seldom simple and requires detailed information gathering and modeling. Patrick is a world leader in this area.

Ports and Pacific National, our sister transport company under the Asciano banner, have teamed to provide a number of multi-modal transport solutions to customers throughout Australia and New Zealand. In each case the transport environment is continually monitored to ensure the optimal customer solution is provided.

Stockpile management at Bulk Ports includes the collection of data regarding the stored material and its storage location within the stockpile. This data is vital for quality assurance and blending operations. Research is also undertaken to guarantee the correct mode of storage is employed to ensure preservation of the quality and turnover of the bulk material.

With a clear goal of providing the most efficient movement of cargo through bulk and general ports around Australia, Ports will continue to invest in people, new technology, hardware and systems to meet today's demands and tomorrow's growth.

Protecting your assets
Ensuring the protection and security of our clients' cargoes is of paramount importance to Patrick. The Auto, Bulk & General division has in place a range of stringent, 24 hour security measures which are continually reviewed as part of our rigorous Risk Management strategy. Additionally, cargo handling and process management training is regularly undertaken to up-skill and re-skill in line with ever-changing process improvements.

Streamlined solutions? No problem.
By carefully listening to what clients want, we continue to develop new and innovative service delivery methods, designed to improve efficiencies and increase value across all parts of the supply chain.

Here are just a few examples of our innovative customer-driven solutions:

• The new, purpose-designed GSP Operations IT System, which will provide direct-to-client interface, effectively streamlining the visibility, delivery, handling and dispatch of cargo;
• A direct link with the Australian Customs Cargo Clearance system, in conjunction with Patrick's ingenious cargo tracking technology, resulting in increased productivity, ease of logistics chain management and significant time savings for all parties.

Combine these Bulk & General Ports services with the transport options and flexibility provided through Pacific National and you too can enjoy the convenience of a seamless, highly efficient logistics chain unmatched at most ports around the world.           

Corporate responsibility
Ports has a primary commitment to managing and operating a quality focused, safe and environmentally efficient business.

A number of key programs and management systems have been introduced in recent years, which has resulted in the GeelongPort and Patrick Ports-Hastings businesses in Victoria attaining Certification to ISO 9001 (Quality), ISO 14001 (Environment), AS-NZS 4801(Safety) and Safety Map Standards.

GeelongPort and Patrick Ports-Hastings were the first ports in Australia to achieve triple accreditation and this underlines our commitment to quality, safety and the environment. Ports is currently instituting further programs and systems at its other businesses in Australia and is dedicated to obtaining triple accreditation at all business sites.

With the goal of "zero harm", Ports has established, promoted and adopted the following set of key values that underpin how safety is managed effectively:

• all injuries can be prevented;
• working safely is a condition of employment;
• employee involvement is essential to workplace safety;
• management and employees are accountable for safety;
• all operating safety risks can be safeguarded; and
• training employees to work safely is essential to maintaining and improving workplace safety.

The success of this strategy, implemented through active staff involvement, has resulted in a sustained high level safety performance over recent years.

Environmental care
Like all Patrick businesses, Auto, Bulk & General is equally committed to the provision of safe, reliable and responsive port services in an environmentally sensitive and sustainable manner. Caring for the environment is one of our core values.

To fulfill this commitment, Ports complies with all applicable environmental laws whilst performing its service undertakings and actively engages the participation and support of its managers and employees to:

• achieve environmental standards which meet or exceed statutory requirements and client expectations;
• identify and monitor its environmental position with a focus on continual improvement in performance;
• provide its employees with sufficient leadership, training and resources to allow them to give effect to this policy;
• align environmental issues with other organisational policies in order to achieve proper reporting and control; and
• communicate openly with clients and interested stakeholder on environmental performance and improvement issues.

Constantly evolving community expectations regarding dust exposure have meant that this area of bulk handling operations is now a key factor in any new

and existing operation. Ports is proactive in regard to dust control systems and has implemented a number of initiatives at our Bulk Ports including:-:

• the enclosure of handling systems;
• control of the of water content of materials;
• controlled wash down of equipment;
• responsible catchment of rainwater run-off;
• preparation for storm events;
• control of employee exposure;
• installation of ongoing monitoring systems;
• local supply and support for dust collection or suppression systems; and
• open and transparent dissemination of monitoring results to the public.

Any dust control system must be designed and installed with the ability to upgrade or expand the system in future to accommodate changes in material properties, dust control levels, plant expansion and community expectations.

Best practice environmental management provides benefit to our clients, shareholders and staff by contributing to the overall well-being and economic health of the communities in which we operate.