According to Saskia, one of the challenges in her job is whether to invest in future innovations. ‘When do you wait and when do you anticipate the market?’ We have learned that the market has innovative power. This year, we have seen more than 160 startups and scaleups, which we can select from when starting a project or pilot with the market. It means we don’t have to reinvent the wheel.’ Saskia has worked intensely with startups before and used digital tools for new services for clients. ‘Before coming to the Port of Rotterdam Authority, I worked at Shell where I wrote the first digital strategy for the global Shell group, which I was then able to implement for the B2B section.’ 

Besides finding digital solutions for just-in-time sailing, Saskia and her team are working on digital support for the industry in the port of Rotterdam. ‘Why? Because we need a lot of electricity to enable the energy transition in the industrial cluster,’ Saskia explains. ‘Consider electricity for e-boilers, heat pumps and electrolysis for hydrogen production. We have to make the electricity available. That is partly tied up in the companies’ contracts. We are therefore currently working on a pilot with six major industrial companies in the Botlek to improve efficiency and thereby reduce grid congestion. Furthermore, we have recently developed an operational prototype featuring a digital model of several new companies planning to establish themselves in the port but facing delays due to grid congestion. We can use that to monitor the best times for each company to consume or produce energy, allowing us to remove the peak load. We hope this enables more energy to become available, which is required for the energy transition. An added advantage of this is that energy prices will drop. We are currently a year further. We expect the results in mid-2025,’ Saskia says.  

‘If I look five years ahead? Then I hope that digitalisation has massively contributed to achieving the Port of Rotterdam Authority’s new corporate strategy in terms of sustainability, agility and earning power.’ In her private life, Saskia also contributes to a better future. ‘We decided not to get a second car, even though logistically, it would make things easier for many years. We solve that using the bike, public transport and shared mopeds. It can be tricky figuring it all out at times, but we think it’s better for the environment. I try to buy more sustainable clothing and to use things for longer. In terms of tech, I am a fan of the online ‘Marktplaats’ where I buy and mainly sell things due to the circularity.’ What her personal wish is for the port in five years? ‘That I have made the port that little bit better.’

Saskia is proud of what she and her team have achieved and are achieving, and about the fact that she manages such a diverse team within the Port of Rotterdam Authority. ‘I ensure wide diversity in my team, because I believe you can be yourself more in a varied group, whether that’s in terms of nationality, age, multicultural background and/or gender.’ She therefore cares for her team. ‘I encourage the men and women in my team to take parental leave, for example. Also, by being open about my experiences with IVF treatments, I hope to be able to help others, in this case women.’ Saskia has for example, contributed to a podcast.

To further improve the port of Rotterdam, Saskia’s team collaborates with the Harbour Master’s team, and they are currently working on the digital support for just-in-time sailing. This regards adjusting the sailing speed to the arrival time in the port. That also benefits the energy transition because just-in-time sailing reduces emissions. Saskia: We are aiming for a 20% reduction in shipping emissions. We are running a pilot with loading owner Vitol and tank terminal operator Vopak. Together, we are also looking at making good agreements about who benefits from just-in-time sailing. We expect the results from this pilot in the coming months.’

‘Consider for example finding an answer to the question of how we can reduce the waiting times and congestion by collecting containers from terminals while the terminals can continue operating. In conjunction with Portbase and Transport and Logistics Netherlands , we have developed the Port Alert app for this which provides real-time notifications about delays and disruptions in the port. In the end this could enable shippers and forwarders to make other decisions which could result in less delays and waiting hours for transport companies,’ according to Saskia.  

In the port of Rotterdam, Saskia and her 24-person team and stakeholders work daily on finding smart solutions in the logistics ecosystem (port calls, modes of transport) and the industry (energy systems) for the energy transition in the port. Saskia provides various examples of how you can use digital support to make measurably smarter, more energy efficient and environmentally friendly choices in logistics and the industry.

‘Where my passion for tech comes from? I have always been fascinated with making things easier. I was preoccupied with computers from a young age and both my parents were creative in devising and developing solutions,’ Saskia says. She rarely uses Google nowadays, only AI tools. ‘I use Google to search for business details at most, such as the Yellow Pages.’ She believes that AI is groundbreaking technology that will affect our lives much in the same way electricity and steam did at the time. She anticipates that AI will play an important role on a large scale in the port of Rotterdam and the supply chains, particularly in terms of dynamic planning. ‘Partners in the supply chains will share their data with each other in real time. That will make production and logistics processes faster and more efficient, resulting in reduced emissions,’ Saskia states.

‘Reducing emissions in our port is no longer a bycatch but the goal. That is also reflected in the Port of Rotterdam Authority’s new corporate strategy for the period of 2025-2029. This is a massive step forward and we must achieve it now,’ Saskia states.