Borusan Lojistik, a leading sea transportation and port management company headquartered in Istanbul, has implemented a radio frequency data collection network to integrate communications in one of its’ fastest growing hubs on the Marmara Sea. Gemlik Port, built in 1983, was extended in 2000 by a new investment, more than doubling the port capacity. Borusan expanded through the acquiring other companies and as the business grew and the number and complexity of transactions increased, Borusan realized that they needed to strengthen their data communication network.

In port environments, the construction of a network is a challenge and Borusan had to consider not only the physical nature of their site, (Gemlik Port covers 65,000 square meters, of which about one quarter is closed area), but also the cost trade-offs of total coverage. Their technology supplier, BOS Group, supported Borusan Logistic’s Data Processing Team during the testing and selection of the RF technology to implement.

Borusan chose the PSC Falcon 345 as the hand-held terminal with 2.4GHz spread spectrum radio communication operating on a Cisco wireless network. The terminal is used by the workers to record transactions during the loading and unloading of vessels, as well as load transfers, ship-land movements and import/export store movements. Other functions that can be controlled via the wireless network include containment management tasks (washing, inspection, etc.) as well as crew shifts, access control, and equipment tracking.

An extension of the existing fiber optic network was required to provide new points for connecting the access points in the wireless network. In areas where extending the fiber optic line was not feasible, coverage was provided via wireless bridging of the Cisco access points. The layout of the wireless network back-bone of access points had to guarantee coverage even in areas where RF transmission was obstructed by machinery and iron sheet rolls stored and transported in the area. The five access points were installed on light poles, mounted in IP65 enclosures to protect them from the elements. BOS Group’s technical staff worked with Borusan, testing various antenna and power output combinations during the system implementation period and the result was satisfactory. Workers can gather data both in outdoors and in the indoor storage areas, enabling them to have complete mobility while tracking their activities and collecting data with the handheld terminals.

“PSC’s Falcon 345 terminals have worked perfectly from the beginning on our SQL server, with our Kozan Borlos software. This technology is the reason the project succeeded, plus the technology can be easily upgraded at low cost” comments Mustafa Isgi, Assistan IT Manager for Gemlik