Managing an Asset - Gear for Port Maintenance

In some harbours, ships can only enter or leave during the period from a few hours before high tide to a few hours after high tide when the water depth will accommodate the draught of the ship.  In 1994 Fremantle was the first port in the world to use Dynamic Under Keel Clearance technology (DUKC) for container ships, to maximise the efficiency of ship movements. Now used around the world this Australian technology provides exact information about the depth of the water beneath ships. DUKC means the port and shippers can calculate to a high degree of precision the window of time that ships are able to transit, and also maximise cargo-loading. These days, every centimetre counts in terms of ship turnaround and that translates to efficiency, dollars, and customer satisfaction. Shipping companies save millions of dollars a year by being able to optimise their loads at Fremantle.

In the Port of Fremantle, this device was used for many years to measure tides. In the past, a fairly crude wire-and-float station stood in A Shed, just across from the Museum. Initially it was only the depth of water for shipping movement that was of interest. Now, old tidal records are being scrutinsed to see if there is any discernable change in water depths as possible evidence of rising of sea levels. Fremantle Ports current tide gauge is housed in a cone shaped structure on the end of Victoria Quay, just outside the Museum. It has a radio link to the port’s operation centre and the depth can be checked remotely.