At a busy bulk cargo port, every minute counts - and that’s where TBA’s CommTrac proves its value. From the first vessel arrival to the review of the day's KPIs, CommTrac keeps operations flowing seamlessly across the terminal.
Let's take a look at a typical a “day in the life” of a CommTrac implementation at a typical bulk and general cargo terminal, looking at eight different ways users rely on it throughout their shifts. Whether it’s planning discharge, monitoring stock levels, coordinating loading, or generating and analysing reports, CommTrac supports every role across the port.
Join us on a journey through the control room, quayside, offices, stockyard, and beyond to see how CommTrac powers efficiency, accuracy, and control...
Annie starts her morning in the port office with a fresh cup of coffee and a clear objective: keeping the day’s operations running smoothly. As a planner, her role is to review berth allocations and ensure resources are in the right place at the right time. Using CommTrac, Annie quickly accesses a complete overview of the day’s arrivals, departures and planned jobs. Instead of relying on spreadsheets or phone calls, she sees real-time berth schedules, vessel details, and cargo manifests all in one system.
With a few clicks, Annie can optimize quay space and minimize delays. She then uses CommTrac to create and assign jobs for the port workers, making sure each team knows when and where to be. From crane operators to yard staff, everyone’s schedule is instantly aligned with the latest plan.
Throughout the day, Annie continues to monitor activities in CommTrac - whether a vessel arrives ahead of schedule or high winds disrupt operations - and updates the plan accordingly. The system gives her confidence that every decision is based on the most up-to-date information. For Annie, CommTrac isn’t just a tool - it’s the backbone of her daily work, ensuring efficiency, clarity, and control at the port.
Out on the quay, Sarah pulls on her high-vis jacket and grabs her laptop. Her focus today is on supervising the discharge of a bulk vessel, a job that requires constant attention to detail. With CommTrac, she has a live view of the vessel’s progress, showing exactly how much cargo has been unloaded and where it’s being transferred in the yard.
But today the weather isn’t on her side. Strong winds and heavy rain have slowed operations, and she knows the berth must be cleared quickly to make space for another vessel arriving later in the week. Instead of guessing where time can be saved, Sarah turns to CommTrac. The system highlights bottlenecks, such as slower crane cycles and reduced truck movements, allowing her to pinpoint what’s holding up the process.
Armed with this information, Sarah coordinates with crane operators and yard staff, shifting resources to where they’re needed most. She can see in real time whether changes are having an impact, giving her the confidence to make quick, informed decisions. For Sarah, CommTrac isn’t just tracking cargo - it’s the tool that helps her keep operations moving, even when the weather tries to slow them down.
In the accounts office, Ahmed receives a call from one of the port’s customers asking for an updated invoice. In the past, this would have meant hours of chasing paperwork, double-checking data, and hoping nothing had been missed. But with CommTrac, things are very different. Acting as the port’s “single source of truth,” CommTrac automatically captures every detail of the operation - whether it’s demurrage, additional work requested by the shipping line, or unforeseen activities caused by bad weather.
Ahmed logs on and quickly generates a fresh invoice that reflects the most up-to-date information. There’s no need to manually calculate charges or rely on colleagues to pass along updates; everything is already recorded and verified in CommTrac. Within minutes, he’s able to send the customer an accurate and transparent invoice, confident that nothing has been overlooked.
He can’t help but think back to the bad old days, when missed charges or incorrect figures could eat into profitability and frustrate customers. Now, thanks to CommTrac, invoicing has gone from one of the hardest parts of his job to one of the easiest. For Ahmed, CommTrac isn’t just their billing system - the system provides peace of mind, ensuring fairness for customers and protecting their bottom line.
In the control room, Tom keeps a close eye on the port’s grain silos. Monitoring capacity is a critical part of his role, ensuring there’s always space available for incoming shipments while maintaining smooth flow to customers. With CommTrac, Tom can see live silo levels displayed in a clear, graphical format that makes complex data instantly understandable. Instead of scrolling through spreadsheets or chasing updates, he gets the full picture at a glance.
Recently, Tom led an integration project connecting CommTrac to the terminal’s automation system. Now the integrated solution prevents users from planning or executing conveying routes, which could cross contaminate cargo. Also, as tasks are executed, the silo inventory updates automatically, without the need for manual input or delays. He’s impressed with how seamlessly the integration works and how reliable the information has become.
This real-time visibility helps Tom plan more effectively, balancing vessel discharges with customer collections and spotting potential issues before they escalate. When capacity starts to tighten, he can coordinate with colleagues across the port to adjust schedules and keep operations on track. For Tom, CommTrac isn’t just a monitoring tool - it’s a powerful decision-making aid that gives him confidence every day, making one of the port’s most complex processes simple, accurate, and risk free.
In the planning office, James is putting the finishing touches on tomorrow’s schedule. The plan has been in place since the shipping line booked in the vessel visit weeks ago through CommTrac’s customer portal, which clearly presented the available windows for them to select. Everything has been aligned and ready for days, but now there’s a twist. James has just learned that an extra crane will unexpectedly be available. Instead of causing stress, this news is an opportunity.
With CommTrac, adjusting the plan is simple. James updates the discharging schedule to include the additional crane, instantly recalculating workloads and timelines. The result? The job will be completed faster, freeing up valuable berth time and reducing turnaround for the shipping line. All changes are visible across the system, meaning everyone from quay teams to yard staff will be working with the latest information.
As a new hire, James has only ever known the CommTrac way of planning. When colleagues share stories of juggling last-minute changes with phone calls, paper notes, and endless spreadsheets, he can hardly believe it. For him, CommTrac makes flexibility feel effortless, turning unexpected changes into opportunities to deliver better service and greater efficiency.
In his office, Marcus sits down to tackle a request from one of the port’s most important customers. They’re known for being demanding, but as the port’s largest client, their satisfaction is vital. This time, they want a detailed report covering the past six months of vessel activity - arrivals, loading, unloading, and departures.
In the days before CommTrac, Marcus knows such a task would have been daunting. It would have taken an entire day to gather data from scattered spreadsheets, emails, and handwritten logs, and even then, much of the information simply wouldn’t have been available.
Now, the process is completely different. Using CommTrac’s reporting tools, Marcus can generate a comprehensive, accurate report in minutes, tailored to exactly what the customer has asked for. Every event, every movement, every delay is already captured by the system, creating a complete picture that builds trust and transparency.
In a fiercely competitive industry, Marcus knows shipping lines are constantly searching for ways to boost productivity and efficiency. With CommTrac, he never has to worry about whether he can deliver the insights his customers demand - the data is always there. For him, CommTrac turns challenging queries into opportunities to strengthen relationships and showcase the port’s levels of customer service.
On the other side of the site, Lucy is deep into a new project aimed at making better use of the port’s storage areas. A large building has recently become available, and she and her team are working to convert it into a new storage facility. With CommTrac, Lucy can map out exactly how the space will be used, deciding where each commodity should be stored based not only on available capacity but also on the unique requirements of each cargo type.
CommTrac’s visual interface makes the task far simpler than it might otherwise be. At a glance, Lucy can see how her allocations fit together, spot potential conflicts, and identify opportunities to make the layout more efficient. Instead of relying on paper sketches or guesswork, every decision is backed by clear data and real-time insight.
By the end of her shift, Lucy has built a workable plan that maximizes the building’s potential and ensures it will be operational sooner than expected. She’ll review it with her manager before final approval, confident that CommTrac has helped her design a solution that is both practical and efficient. For Lucy, CommTrac is more than a planning tool - it’s the key to unlocking new capacity at the terminal.
As the day winds down, Peter, one of the port group’s directors, takes time to review the bigger picture. With operations spread across multiple terminals, keeping track of overall performance could once have been a fragmented, time-consuming process. But with CommTrac, Peter has everything he needs in one place.
From his dashboard, he can view a holistic summary of activity across all terminals, comparing performance side by side and drilling down into key metrics. Whether it’s vessel turnaround times, berth utilization, or cargo throughput, CommTrac highlights trends and reveals bottlenecks that might otherwise go unnoticed. For Peter, this clarity is invaluable.
The board is preparing for the next quarter, and discussions are already underway about where to invest, how to allocate resources, and which strategies will deliver the greatest returns. CommTrac provides the reliable data he needs to make those decisions with confidence. Instead of working from assumptions or patchy reports, Peter has a complete and accurate view of the business at his fingertips.
For him, CommTrac isn’t just an operational tool - it’s a strategic one, ensuring the business can plan ahead, strengthen efficiency, and maintain its competitive edge in a fast-moving industry.
From the quay to the control room, from accounts to the boardroom, TBA’s CommTrac proves itself as the port’s central nervous system - supporting every role, every decision, and every operation. Across a single day, we’ve seen how planners, workers, managers, and directors alike rely on CommTrac’s real-time data, seamless integration, and clear visibility to keep the port running smoothly.
By turning complexity into clarity, CommTrac not only improves efficiency today but also equips ports to adapt, grow, and compete tomorrow. For every challenge and every opportunity, CommTrac ensures the port stays one step ahead.
Find out more about CommTrac