Panama Canal to launch vessel scheduling system

The new vessel scheduling and maritime resource management system will utilize algorithms and integrate canal operations to shorten vessel waiting times and improve reliability.    The Panama Canal will be launching a new vessel scheduling and maritime resource management system, according to a release issued Wednesday by the Panama Canal Authority (ACP).
   The ACP said the system will transform how the canal schedules transit operations by formulating an integrated operations plan for all of its critical resources, including tugboats, pilots and line handlers. Additionally, the system will help reduce costs by optimizing resource allocation.
   By implementing this new system, shippers should be able to experience increased reliability and shortened vessel waiting times, which have surged since the completion of the canal expansion in June 2016.
   The company responsible for the optimization software is Quintiq, which is part of Dassault Systemes. Quintiq will utilize modeling technology with path-optimization algorithms and mathematical, constraint and graphical programming as the basis of the scheduling and resource utilization functions of the new system.
   The new system will be fully integrated into canal operations over the next two years, with vessel scheduling capabilities expected to be operational by the end of the fiscal year in September 2017.