A DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM for ANALYZING the PORT CAPACITY by SYSTEM DYNAMICS APPROACH

In recent decades, globalization has increased trade volume. As a result, the importance of transportation infrastructures has improved so that the governments take advantage of globalization. Seaports, as crucial nodes in converting efficient marine transportation to other modes, are vital infrastructure that should be managed wisely. Keeping up ports capacity to the ongoing demand always is a need. But port capacity is a complex issue. On one hand, there are different types of cargos and ships to be load and handled. On the other hand, Port operation for each type of cargo depends on many different elements and there are feedback relations among them. Therefore port capacity is a complex nonlinear dynamics concept that should be studied by an appropriate approach. [1] In this paper, the general aspects of SD modeling and its consistency with the port’s decision environment have been discussed. Moreover, an integrated system dynamics model which simulates the seaport transportation system has been developed.