The Port of Antwerp has launched the ePICenter, a project meant to research and develop solutions to global supply chain challenges.
In a statement, the port said it will join with 36 partners to look for ways to “enable seamless transport of goods” and will focus particularly on the operational opportunities offered by Industry 4.0, hyperloop and autonomous vehicles.
The project is funded by the European Horizon 2020 programme and has a timeframe of 42 months. It will see technology innovators and environmental experts to collaborate on increasing efficiency and sustainability.
Port of Antwerp, as a coordinator of the ePIcenter, will host one of the large scale demonstrations. The ‘Link of the Future’ demonstration will focus on implementing the various ePIcenter innovations in one of Europe’s largest multimodal transport hubs, as well as realising the first transcontinental cyber secure trade lane.
Furthermore, Port of Antwerp says its international network will create possibilities for valuable worldwide knowledge sharing and further improvement of the tools developed in the project.
Erwin Verstraelen, Chief digital and innovation officer, Port of Antwerp had this to say: “We are very enthusiastic about kicking off the ePIcenter project, which will allow us to create a transcontinental, integrated and transparant freight corridor by leveraging existing and promising technologies, frameworks and data standards.
“Port of Antwerp and Port of Montreal, both important nodes in the global supply chain, will act as catalyst for symbiosis amongst the different stakeholders.”
Annick De Ridder, vice mayor of the Port of Antwerp also commented: “The future of our port and its prosperity goes hand in hand with the power of innovation.
“We are proud to play a pioneering role and to serve as a laboratory for innovation. Today more than ever it is important to make our global supply chain more resilient to an evolving and volatile world with a variety of challenges.”
