Sustainability practices in port operations are critical issue to achieve port sustainability involving economic, social and environmental issues. To assist ports to successfully implant sustainability practices into their operations, this paper conceptualized the structure of sustainability practices in international port operations, by clustering the relevant issues, empirically. Using 203 samples collected from port stakeholders in the major ports in Northeast Asia, multi-measurement items were analyzed on exploratory factor analysis in SPSS 21. Results generated a structure that consists of five sub-dimensions conceptualizing sustainability practices in the context of port operations. As operative practices to accommodate current and future demands in a port, the five-factor model clustering the relevant issues incorporate environmental technologies, process and quality improvement, monitoring and upgrading, communication and cooperation, and active participation. Providing useful insights for strategic agenda to assist ports to incorporate sustainability practices in their operations, the five-factor model offer both a descriptive and diagnostic management tool for future improvement in port operations.

A B S T R A C TThe structure of competitiveness between hub ports in the multipolar Northeast Asian system will determine which ports achieve regional gateway status. A survey instrument to assess 21 measurement items generated 203 responses from Shanghai, Hong Kong and Busan. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a valid and reliable competitiveness construct underpinning 19 measurement scales and a four-factor model incorporating availability, operational efficiency, port costs and service quality. Differences in factor importance revealed that success as a regional gateway port depends on a port area developing strategically into a multi-functional business centre. The model offers a management tool to guide future port improvement.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract