SINGAPORE: Singapore’s port risks being left behind by its rivals that are “fast catching up, and in some respects quite possibly ahead of us”, said Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Saturday (Oct 17), as he called for technological transformation while not leaving workers to face the challenges alone.
He also highlighted the importance of strong tripartism to enable PSA’s management team, the unions and the workers to work together in a “relationship of trust” to build a “disciplined and skilled workforce”.
Mr Lee was speaking at a dinner celebration for the 80th anniversary of the Singapore Port Workers Union (SPWU), which represents PSA employees.
“PSA has done well, adopting technology and upgrading your operations to keep our port efficient and competitive. But other ports in the region are making progress digitalising and automating too,” said Mr Lee, citing Shanghai’s Yangshan port as an example.
“If PSA slackens or becomes complacent, we risk being left behind and losing our business.”
To outsiders, Mr Lee said the past six decades “look like an unbroken string of successes”.
“But those of us who have participated in this journey know just how much hard work actually went into it – how many difficult strategic choices we faced along the way; how many times we needed to transform the way we operate; and how from time to time we made missteps, and painfully corrected them,” he said.
Giving an example, he noted how advancements in technology allowed PSA to move from the manual loading and unloading of ship cargo to the use of quayside and yard cranes.
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