Shiko Jana sat on the panel alongside Dr. Malka Nir, VP of Advanced Manufacturing at the Innovation Authority; Ms. Tal Kaufmann, Chairman of the Council for Small and Medium Factories, CEO and Owner of Simtal Nano-Coatings; and Mr. Reli Kovarsky, CEO of BDO OPEX. The panel was moderated by patent attorney Ehud Hausman, Senior Partner and head of the Hi-Tech Department of Reinhold Cohn & Partners.
In response to the question: What does Ashdod Port, a traditional organization, have to do with startups and innovation?
“As you said, this counterintuitive. We have embraced the challenge of taking a traditional organization and turning it into an advanced innovative company that will find solutions for problems such as the long waits at the port. We setup a technological incubator and welcomed 40 startups, with some of the best minds in Israel, so they can help us make the work at the port more efficient. The startups are tackling fields such as cyber, in order to ensure operational continuity at the port, which is critical for the State of Israel. Thanks to the technology that has been developed we are able to protect the port from cyberattacks. An additional topic is the field of green technology: We have taken on the challenge of reducing pollution at the port, by investing 2 billion shekels in this field. We will see results already this year. We want the unloading process to be cleaner, to keep the air clean and the sea clean. We are making progress in these areas. For example, a ship that currently takes eight hours to unload will soon be unloaded within one hour. Thanks to our accelerator, Ashdod Port will become a cleaner and more efficient port".
Shiko Jana also addressed the topic of safety: “Safety innovation processes start with the CEO. It is his responsibility to ensure that there are safety supervisors for each project. The port is like a factory. We appointed innovation officers and we are working together with the Manufacturers Association of Israel to improve safety and efficiency, which will have an impact outside the port as well".
At the end of the panel discussion, Noga Nir Neeman, the conference moderator, asked the Port's CEO about the 50 ships that are in line waiting to enter the port. Shiko responded that “this is a global problem. He said that there are presently only 12 ships outside the port. In any case, it is important to take note of the work we are doing: Over 20 ships are being unloaded at the port as we speak. And we are constantly trying to improve."
