Commercial aviation relies heavily on autopilot, until things go wrong

Commercial aviation relies heavily on autopilot, until things go wrong. When your plane is wobbling towards the runway in howling wind, there’s no substitute for a real pilot to get you safely back on the ground.

What may come as a surprise is that it’s the same for South Africa’s port logistics system which, just like an airbus on a stormy day, requires human intervention to cope with major headwinds.

This was the takeaway message from a recent Cape Chamber Port logistics workshop aimed at finding solutions to current logistics challenges. In the absence of proper guidance the system is battling to respond to systemic challenges, and even a seemingly minor problem, like a shortage of tyre gantries, can affect an entire regional economic system.

Conversely removing the most critical constraint can unlock massive economic growth potential. 

“Essentially this incredible chunk of economic activity is running on autopilot,” said Glen Steyn, container terminal and logistics chain project manager for the Western Cape Government. “When something goes wrong there is no diagnostic to deal with it, no response mechanism,” Steyn said.

The system ‘pulls apart’ when there is disequilibrium, and like Humpty Dumpty after the big fall it is difficult to put back together again,” Steyn says.

We as the Cape Chamber are committed to putting things back together again as soon as possible, buoyed by the enthusiasm and level of expertise seen at these workshops. The collective knowledge on display is testimony to the fact that we have what it takes to not only fix the system but improve on it to meet the upcoming logistics challenges here in the Western Cape.

Cape Town’s population is expected to grow by the equivalent of another Bloemfontein over the next decade, and autopilot mode will only get us so far. But the corollary to that is that Cape Town and the entire Western Cape has enormous growth potential that can be harnessed for the collective good.

We concur with Glen Steyn that, far from being a liability, the Port of Cape Town has the potential to be an asset as valuable and admired as iconic Table Mountain.

Autopilot is all very well when cruising above the clouds, but we need firm hands to get us up there. 

John Lawson
CEO of the Cape Chamber of Commerce & Industry