Port of Houston Authority Expands Gate Automation with APS Technology

SAN DIEGO, Oct. 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- APS Technology Group, Inc., a leading provider of optical character recognition (OCR) and automation technology solutions for marine and intermodal container terminals, announced the Port of Houston Authority (PHA) will implement the APS Gate OCR Portal to automate equipment identification, traffic processing and damage inspection imaging at the newly constructed entry gate complex of its Bayport container terminal in Houston.  One of the largest ports in the world, The Port of Houston handles 69.6 percent of the containerized cargo market in the U.S. Gulf, and 95.5 percent of the containers moved through Texas seaports.  

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Expanding on the six existing lanes of Gate OCR installed at Bayport in 2010, PHA will add six additional portals to process entering trucks.  The system automatically identifies containers, chassis, and license plates associated with the equipment.  The APS Gate OCR solution will be integrated with the Navis N4 gate system to enable the automatic gate processing functions without human interaction.  Since implementing APS at the six existing lanes in 2010, PHA has transformed the gate into a free-flowing process – processing takes about half the time it did prior to gate automation. No queuing led to a 48% reduction in truck idling, dramatically reducing emissions.

PHA faces a special challenge in that a high percentage of the trailers that carry containers through the terminal are not marked with an ISO standard stencil. APS will provide 2D optical tags for identification and its patented MatchMaker™ tractor identification solution to automatically associate containers to the trailer or other container transport vehicles.

"We're excited to extend our partnership with The Port of Houston as they continue to modernize their operations," said Allen Thomas, APS Technology COO.  "This is just another example of The Port of Houston Authority's progressive leadership in embracing programs that improve productivity and efficiency while also lowering the environmental impact on the local community."

About APS Technology Group

APS Technology Group is a leading provider of OCR and automation technology solutions for marine and intermodal terminals.  The solutions improve the productivity, efficiency and cost effectiveness of container operations by increasing the visibility, velocity, and volume of cargo moving through a terminal's gate, rail, vessel and yard operations.

APS leads the industry with over 700 OCR and automation systems installed at 43 marine and intermodal container terminals in 14 countries around the world, including APM Terminals, CSX Railroad, DP World and HHLA.  The company is located in San Diego, CA and has offices or partner resellers in North America, South America, Asia and Europe. For more information, call +1 858.571.4444 or visit http://www.aps-technology.com.

SOURCE APS Technology Group, Inc.