Off Shanghai’s southeastern coast, the Phase IV automated terminal at Shanghai Yangshan Deep Water Port operates continuously with minimal human on-site presence. As the world’s largest single-unit automated container terminal, it repeatedly sets global handling records, reaching peak speeds over 60 container moves per hour per crane.
The terminal’s efficiency relies on a digital twin system and an independently developed control core. This intelligent platform manages 29 quay cranes, 121 gantry cranes, and 155 automated guided vehicles in real time, increasing waterfront efficiency and overall yard capacity by about 30 percent compared to conventional terminals.
Using an F5G all-optical network, operators control cranes via joysticks from command centers 30 to over 100 kilometers away. On the ground, a two-level logistics hub separates autonomous battery-swapping trucks from traditional traffic to ease bridge congestion.
These integrated technologies enabled Phase IV to handle over 8 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2025. Building on this performance, Shanghai Port processed a record 15.194 million TEUs in the first half of 2026, an 8.1 percent increase year on year. Future developments focus on optimizing yard algorithms and testing embodied intelligence to automate container twist-lock removal.
Source: People’s Daily
