Sparcs N4 system first choice for Haifa

Haifa Port Company is to replace its 20-year-old container management system with the Navis Sparcs N4 terminal operating system from Zebra Enterprise Solutions (ZES). The northern Israeli port, on the shore of the Bay of Haifa in the eastern Mediterranean, will implement the system during the second half of the year. "We were impressed by Sparcs N4’s richness of functionality, advanced planning modules and the simplicity of using the system by the end user," said Uri Regev, the port’s CIO. "We were also impressed by the high level professional staff of ZES and by the unique methodology used for the analysis of our requirements. "We were equally impressed with the R&D planning and how ZES is adaptive to the needs of its customers. This issue was very important to us."

In 2008, the Haifa’s Eastern, Western and Kishon terminals collectively handled 1.25m teu. The port is expected to increase to 2.5m teu in the coming years, after the new Carmel container terminal becomes fully operational this year, said Regev.

The web-based Sparcs N4 system is intended to provide Haifa with improved customer support, increased stacking yard capacity and greater control over resources. "We expect to have better control on the container management, improved productivity, and better services to our customers" said Regev. "We want to be more accessible and transparent to our customers, allowing them to interact with our IT systems."

Bill Walsh, general manager at ZES, added: "In challenging times like these, our software will help the port of Haifa simplify its working environment, deploy resources better, and boost client, partner and workforce efficiency by implementing industry best practices."