The port of Singapore authority : competing in a declining Asian economy

Abstract

The case explores how the city state of Singapore developed its natural resources of a large, deep-water harbour and strategic location to become one of the world's leading ports. To overcome physical limitations faced by the port, and to extend port capacity without adding a proportionate number of employees or land, the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) invested heavily on its Operations Management and Information Technology applications.

In the 1970s, the Port of Singapore Authority anticipated containerisation to take off in a big way and hence, it began preparing for this mode of shipping. By focusing on customer service, PSA encouraged shipping lines to use Singapore as a transshipment hub for Southeast Asia. PSA aimed to minimise turnaround time for ships and to provide the highest quality of service.