Plan to build private 5G network ‘bubble’ across Tacoma Tideflats moves forward
A multimillion dollar plan to stand up a private 5G network at the Port of Tacoma is moving forward.
The plan is the first step in making Tacoma a “smart port” by bringing the latest technology to the Tacoma Tideflats, according to the findings of a feasibility study published last month.
“The implementation of a private 5G network would establish the infrastructure for those working in the Tideflats today to utilize the technology they’re envisioning for the next decade and beyond,” said Joshua Berger, founder and CEO of Washington Maritime Blue, a Seattle-based nonprofit.
5G is the latest generation of cellular technology and is lauded for its faster speeds, ability to connect to more devices and lower latency (the time it takes for some data to get to its destination across a network).
In 2021, a public-private partnership was formed that included Maritime Blue, the 5G Open Innovation Lab, the city of Tacoma and other stakeholders to study whether supply chain, safety, environmental and economic benefits would result from having a 5G network. Findings of the study were shared with the city’s Economic Development Committee on Jan. 25.
A common theme of interest among stakeholders was increased efficiency of port operations: for example, real-time tracking of trucks and cargo coming in and out of the Tacoma Tideflats, which covers more than 5,000 acres.
Operators can find it difficult to locate container storage at the port. One scenario from the study suggested using technology to more easily find “pop up” short- and long-term container storage.
Improving safety across the Tideflats was another priority of the stakeholders, who suggested potential pilot opportunities under a 5G network like real-time alerts on safety and hazard risks, real-time prediction of roadway incidents, remote operation of equipment, centralized port security and badges, and weather event warnings.
Finally, the study listed how a 5G network could pave the way for a sustainable future, including implementation of electric charging stations, smart buildings sharing energy, air and water quality testing and reporting, wildlife and sea life monitoring and less idling of vehicles and vessels.
Now, Maritime Blue is a finalist in the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s Build Back Better program and is applying for up to $75 million for various projects, including the Tacoma Tideflats 5G network “proof of concept,” which is estimated to cost $12-18 million. The project would include 5G umbrella coverage over the entire Tideflats using large radio antennas, and then small-scale radio antennas in two zones: one surrounding the University of Washington Center for Urban Waters and Maritime Blue, and the other near the Husky Terminal. The larger radio antennas are 25-75 meters and the small scale antennas are 5-10 meters.
Fewer than 10 ports across the country offer private 5G networks, said Berger, but Tacoma’s would be unique in that it would allow operators on the Tideflats to opt in to use a shared 5G infrastructure.
“We can build basically a 5G bubble over the entire Tideflats that each operator can then utilize ... Not only are there only a handful of ports in the world doing this, but the open and collaborative model that we’ll build alongside of it will be the first in the world,” Berger said.
Parts of the study drew concern from the International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 23, representing about 1,500 longshoreman in the Port of Tacoma.
“The concern of the ILWU is that such publicly funded technology has a duel purpose of allowing the predominantly foreign owned terminal operators in the Port of Tacoma to seamlessly transition to the use of semi or fully automated terminal equipment…. At the expense of jobs in the community,” Jared Faker, president of ILWU Local 23, said in a statement Wednesday.
Faker pointed to a part of the study that listed a possible case to “allow remote operation of equipment.” The study itself, Faker said, acknowledged that implementation of digitized and automated processes might lead to “overall adverse reductions in live-wage, trade-based jobs.”
“The ILWU is not anti technology,” Faker said in the statement. “But as workers and citizens of this region, we are pro jobs. The Tacoma Tideflats produce thousands of family wage jobs for our community. Those workers in turn buy houses, shop at local restaurants, and pay their taxes. Robots don’t. The Port of Tacoma is funded by the taxpayers of Pierce County to serve two local needs: create a gateway for regional goods and commerce to thrive, and to create jobs in the community. The ILWU is very mindful and committed to ensuring both of those goals are carried out.”
When asked if implementing a 5G network and more technology could put port jobs at risk, Berger acknowledged those are real concerns, but that he has seen digitization lead to more jobs.
“We’re not talking about automating a port here,” Berger said. “We’re talking about building in safety, building in security, visibility.”
Berger also said having a private 5G network could open the doors for more start-ups and companies.
“We’re enabling the technology of operators across the Tideflats, but we would also have the most unique sandbox for technology innovators to come to Tacoma to build,” Berger said. “So the economic development opportunity here is very significant.”
Dustin Stoker, president of Husky Terminal and Stevedoring, LLC, has expressed interest, saying that a private 5G network is necessary to make supply-chain operations at the port more efficient, serving as the “backbone” for new maritime technologies.
“Without (a 5G network) a lot of these technologies that are out there just cannot work because of the amount of data that we need to process and connect between supply chain partners,” Stoker said at the Jan. 25 Economic Development Committee meeting.
Reached by email on Tuesday, Port of Tacoma executive director Eric Johnson said that the port does not currently have plans to directly invest in 5G infrastructure for Port-owned properties, although staff are working to make operations more efficient.
“The Port is focusing its efforts on the Port Community System (PCS), which is working with supply chain partners to improve coordination. The key to this effort is the content of the PCS system and coordination with our supply chain partners, rather than the speed of the network,” Johnson said in a statement on Tuesday.
This story was originally published February 17, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
