A DECISION SUPPORT TOOL FOR PORT PLANNING BASED ON MONTE CARLO SIMULATION

Port planning and management has become a difficult task due to the increasing number of elements involved in port operations, their nature (random in some cases), and the relationships between them. Generally, traditional methods involving empirical formulas or queuing theory can be useful though only for simple cases. In the case of complex systems, the problem needs to be approached from a holistic point of view, and more advanced methodologies should be considered. In such cases, simulation may be the most appropriate solution, especially nowadays, when computation and data management are increasingly more efficient. A methodology for port planning and management, based on Monte Carlo simulation, is presented in this paper. A new software application, OptiPort, has been developed based on this methodology, proposed for use by port managers and planners. The methodology and the software have been validated with real data from the Port of Algeciras.