RAIN

Inland Ports' Readiness for Automated Inland Navigation 

Automation in inland shipping has been progressing steadily for several years. As a result, previous research has primarily focused on ships, with the result that the neighbouring port and handling systems and logistics processes have mostly been considered in isolation, statically and less in terms of their need for adaptation. To date, there has therefore been a lack of holistic scientific research that considers automation in inland waterway transport with its requirements for ports and its effects on site.

The evolutionary nature of automation in inland navigation and a changing transport market make various future scenarios conceivable. A scenario approach is therefore used to create coherent automation scenarios from which recommendations for the necessary technological, organisational and economic adjustments can be derived.

Project objective:

• Identification of the fields of action in the inland ports affected by the automation of ship operations
• Development of response and preparation scenarios
• Close involvement of inland ports and inland shipping 
• Presentation and discussion of results as part of a public project symposium