Journal of Community Medicine & Health Education
Open Access

Abstract

Following globalization, ports play significant roles in intra & intercontinental trade and transport that resulted to handling more than 8 billion tons of diverse cargoes in 2010. In fierce business environment, being port of call for shipping lines and base for cargo owners, require ports to be as competitive and efficient as possible. Since less efficient ports with higher service costs lose their market shares and customers to their competitors and will fade out from business consequently. Authorities do their best to cut costs and rise availability, flexibility and marketability of services for port users consequently. Such objectives accomplished through optimizing operational indexes in ports such as increasing equipment utilization factors and decreasing waiting time, idle time & service time. But the main question is how to enhance such indexes? Applying knowhow in port management & operation, using modern equipment, increasing private sector participation in addition to higher workplace health and safety seem to be available tools for port authorities. Hopefully in recent decades attention toward individuals who work in ports has changed from simple dock workers to human capitals that create competitive advantages. Subsequently variety of occupational health and safety management systems (OHSS) are nowadays in place. But these systems generally focused on protection of people, properties and environment while this research tries to elaborate advantages of OHSS on optimizing ports? operational indexes and explain their final impacts on competitive advantages that should be met by world class ports.

Biography

Mohammad Ali Hasanzadeh, post graduated in Occupational Health from Tehran University of Medical Science (TUMS) also post graduated in Port Management from World Maritime University (WMU) in Malmo, Sweden. Since 2009 as a Ph.D. student he is studying Applied Economics in Antwerp University, Belgium. Authors of books in Port and Harbors Safety Management Systems, Maritime Transport Economics and a number of published papers, he has contributed in several national and international conferences and symposiums on the subject of ergonomics, occupational health, safety, port operation and maritime transport economics.