Year: 2016

Panama, June 29, 2016 – Panama Ports Company (PPC), a leading company in the development of port operations and logistics, welcomed the representatives of the Suez Canal Authority and members of the Board of Directors of the Ports of Sines and Algarve in Portugal to exchange experiences and take a tour of the Balboa Port facilities.

During the tour offered to the representatives of Portugal and Suez, who were visiting the country to attend the inauguration of the Expanded Panama Canal, Peter Cheng, CFO of PPC, accompanied the visitors from Portugal, while Raymond Lam, COO of PPC, escorted the Suez Canal representatives, showing them the port facility, which is considered today the busiest terminal at national level, making the company a port model for other countries in the region.

The president of the Suez Canal Authority, Mohab Mamish, was able to witness the company’s significant progress, thanks to the business model adopted by the port, the investments made in equipment and the improvement of services based on the changes resulting from the efforts put in place for the expansion of the Canal and the industry in general, as various logistics technologies have evolved.

As for the visit of Joao Franco, President of the Board of Directors of the Ports of Sines and Algarve in Portugal, it was propitious and allowed port officials to show the inner harbor, the infrastructure and the equipment, as well as the services offered by the port terminals.

The success of PPC in port operation has been the result of a high level of labor and technical excellence promoted by the company since its inception in the country. PPC executives were able to assure their international guests that this has not only positioned it as the number one company in the local industry, but has also made it possible for the Republic of Panama to achieve its goal of becoming, day by day, a major international logistics center.

Panamá. 29 de junio de 2016. – Panamá Ports Company (PPC), empresa líder en el desarrollo operaciones portuarias y de logística, recibió a los representantes de la Autoridad del Canal de Suez y del Consejo de Administración de los Puertos de Sines y Algarve, Portugal, para intercambiar experiencias y realizar un recorrido por las instalaciones del puerto de Balboa.

Durante el trayecto de los representantes de Portugal y Suez, quienes visitaron el país para participar de los actos de inauguración de la ampliación del Canal de Panamá, Peter Cheng, CFO de PPC, acompañó a los visitantes de Portugal, mientras que Raymond Lam, COO de PPC, brindó el recorrido a los representantes del Canal de Suez, mostrando las instalaciones portuarias, consideradas en la actualidad como la terminal de mayor tráfico a nivel nacional, realidad que convierte a la empresa en modelo portuario para otros países de la región.

El presidente de la Autoridad del Canal de Suez, Mohab Mamish, pudo evidenciar el significativo avance de la empresa tras el modelo de negocios que lleva adelante el puerto, con la inversión en equipos y mejoras de sus servicios enfocados en los cambios producto de los esfuerzos tras la ampliación del Canal, así como en la industria en general, a medida que las diversas tecnologías logísticas evolucionan.

En tanto, la visita del Presidente del Consejo de Administración de los Puertos de Sines y Algarve, Portugal, Joao Franco, fue propicia para conocer el interior del puerto; observar la infraestructura y equipos; así como los servicios que ofrecen sus terminales portuarias.

El éxito alcanzado por PPC en operación portuaria, ha sido el resultado de un alto grado de excelencia laboral que la empresa ha impulsado desde sus inicios en el país, lo que no solo le ha posicionado como la empresa número uno de la industria nacional, sino que se apoya, día a día, al concretar la meta de convertir a la República de Panamá en un importante centro logístico internacional, compartieron los directivos de PPC a los invitados internacionales.

On Friday, May 13^th the first half of the rails (tracks) for Line 2 construction of the Panama Subway (El Metro de Panamá) arrived at the Port of Balboa, Panama City, from Immingham, United Kingdom which will be installed by TSO and CIM.  It’s worth mentioning that it is the third rail-unloading operation that has been carried out at the Port of Balboa.  The first was for Line 1 in 2012, and the second was in 2014 for the Extension of Line 1 that ends in San Isidro.

A total of 3,042 rails were unloaded at Port of Balboa, with 162 units earmarked for the extension of the Line 1 Yard and 2,880 units for Line 2 that goes from San Miguelito to Nuevo Tocumen …covering a distance of 50 kilometers.  The entire cargo was successfully unloaded from the vessel Molengracht in 4 days, utilizing 24-hour shifts.  The rails were transported by Jas Forwarding to the two designated sites in Panama City.  We expect to receive the second batch of rails towards the end of this year.

As an additional note, the total weight of the rails was 2,978 tons. 

Panama Ports Company, administrator of the Balboa and Cristobal terminals, has set the goal of establishing continuous improvement mechanisms for the already excellent performance quality of the country’s port labor force, including the signing of an agreement of mutual support with the National Institute of Professional Education and Training for Human Development (Instituto Nacional de Formación Professional y Capacitación para el Desarrollo Humano, INADEH).

This signing officially constitutes the informal alliance that has existed between the two organizations for several years, in which both PPC and INADEH have benefited from mutual facilities for training and evaluation of human resources, specifically with utilization of the Port Equipment Simulation Center (Centro de Simulación de Equipos Portuarios).

The Port Equipment Simulation Center is a project proposed as a viable alternative to improve the technical and attitudinal skills of human resources handling port logistics equipment (through education and training), both for expert and trainee personnel operating high-end machinery.  This training facility began operations in 2012 with an investment of 7.5-million dollars earmarked to provide 12 simulators that, to date, have trained 1,673 world-class technicians in a variety of disciplines (specialties).  Of those, 256 have been from PPC. 

In addition to the use of these facilities, the agreement has permitted INADEH students to be trained in the areas of loading and verification at the ports of Balboa and Cristobal, independent of the company they previously worked for; thus reinforcing PPC’s commitment to raising the technical level of the industry …with a view towards expanding available areas of practice. 

“It’s an honor for us to work with an institution as important as INADEH”, assured Aitor Ibarreche, Executive President of Panama Ports.  “PPC has always said that there is great potential in the country …which continues to be proven.  These types of partnerships allow us to cultivate hidden human-resource skills; offering them the opportunity to become experts in meticulously technical jobs.” 

The training of INADEH students entails an investment of equipment and time on the part of PPC – an investment the company makes with a firm commitment to improving national human resources.  The agreement is another action within their strategy to keep raising the performance bar of Panamanian port work in order to position it among the best in the world.

Panama Ports Company, manager of the Balboa and Cristobal terminals, trained more than 120 women – including employees and wives of employees – on various topics regarding leadership. The program is part of a series of initiatives being implemented by the ports company, geared towards creating a positive impact on the professional development and families of its employees.

The training modules were designed specifically for these sessions, which spanned several hours, and incorporated topics from budget management to issues related to the healthy empowerment of self-esteem and techniques to foster a healthy work-life balance.

“At PPC, we understand the importance of family as the fundamental building block of society. One of our main objectives at the company is to support our employees and their families in attaining a better environment in which to work and live,” said Aitor Ibarreche, Executive President of Panama Ports Company. “We want the ports to serve as a second home for all those who, day by day, do their part to provide the utmost quality of service in the country.”

As part of the second phase of the program, 23 of the 120 participants in the course volunteered to continue training more women; this, with the aim of creating a multiplier effect that not only benefits countless people, but allows for the initial beneficiaries to – themselves – perpetuate the dissemination of this knowledge.

For Ibarreche, these 23 volunteers, who will be certified as official trainers of the program, will serve as messengers of the progress envisioned by the company for its human resources. “We strongly believe that there will be an increasing number of women who respond to the call,” he predicted.

It is estimated that more than 200 women will graduate from the program this year.

Panama Ports Company, which manages the Balboa and Cristobal terminals, celebrated their 2016 Excellence Awards in the City of Knowledge’s Athenaeum, where a group of employees was honored and recognized for safety, punctuality, leadership, volunteer work, successful cases, and corporate values, among other noteworthy qualities from their daily efforts.

For PPC, this event is a gesture to highlight the work of those who give the best of themselves on a daily basis to turn the company into one of the most renowned in the port industry at the regional level.

The port of Cristobal in the city of Colón (managed by Panama Ports Company) finished a 12-day operation during which it handled the transshipment of 1,263 kilometers of fiber optics, originally used to connect Venezuela with the Canary Islands.

This is the second time the Cristobal terminal has been used for this type of operation because its complexity required significant collaboration between port personnel and national authorities.  The process was carried out in stages using 5 advanced-technology cutting machines, placed alongside the ship in front of each warehouse in order to remove the five rolls consisting of approximately 250 kilometers each.  The fiber was cut into 12-meter segments as it passed through the equipment.

“More and more logistics services are being requested from the ports on a daily basis”, assured Aitor Ibarreche, Panama Ports Company Executive President.  “The global expectation is that the terminals could handle every type of cargo (including the more unusual) and the processing of said cargo for its rapid re-exportation.  We have expanded our logistics-services catalog (from bags of rice to fiber-optic cable) in order to help position Panama as a global hub”.

Once processed, the cabling was placed in containers for shipment to Asia.

The success of this operation was the result of a high degree of labor excellence that PPC has been promoting since its beginnings in the country …which has not only positioned it as the national industry’s number-one company, but also supports, day by day, the goal of turning the Republic of Panama into a truly international logistics center.

The city of Colon celebrates its 164 years of existence this February, consolidating its long history as one of the most important cities in the Republic of Panama.  Colon is the quintessential commercial point of Latin America, serving as a base of operation for various companies at both the regional and international levels. Panama Ports Company is honored to have had the city of Colon among their homes for the past 19 years, as manager of the Cristobal terminal – one of the country’s leading ports.

For PPC, Colon has served as a second home; where both have enjoyed a long- lasting relationship based on mutual support. Over the years, the company has sought to exceed the parameters of common business practices to provide benefits to Colon residents worthy of the appreciation that they, in turn, have shown to the port.

Part of PPC’s philosophy of giving back to the community, has led them to create projects that help communities like Bambu Lane. Among the community outreach projects carried out in this neighborhood were cleaning and garbage collection, painting, repairing the sports field, and the delivery of uniforms. Likewise, people with a conflictive background were provided the opportunity to start with a clean slate and begin a career with the company; a second chance that, without a doubt, was maximized to its fullest. Today, they are role models in their communities.  Who doesn’t appreciate a second chance in life and even more so, an opportunity to build a career in the ports area. They are our heroes of the neighborhood.

PPC has also made concerted efforts to encourage the cohesion of the family unit among its employees. Along these lines, the company initiated a series of activities to create scenarios of healthy recreation for their employees and associates, including sports days, which were well-received by all. Specific courses for spouses of employees were also launched to offer a space for personal growth.

“La Tacita de Oro has received and accepted us for 19 years with much more respect and affection that we could have imagined,” said Aitor Ibarreche, CEO of PPC. “The people of Colon emanate an inexhaustible work ethic and a contagious joy that makes this city a true home for the company. That’s why we wanted to make Colon a second home for our employees.”

In addition to the various activities geared towards family integration, Cristobal recently opened its first chapel, with the intention of providing its employees with a spacious, harmonious, and spiritual place in which to pray.

To Ibarreche, such projects, rather than being considered an expense, are actually viewed as an investment in the valuable human capital that makes PPC what it is… a successful company – in a place that has opened its doors. “We have several plans for the future, including a citywide cleaning program in which those employees who wish to donate their time may contribute to the improvement of this beautiful city,” he said.

For Panama Ports Company, the city of Colon, which celebrates its 164th anniversary, will always be a special place, which is why every day the company will continue to strengthen their commitment to promoting its growth.