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  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
481

Big Maritime Data: The promises and perils of the Automatic Identification System : Shipowners and operators’ perceptions

Kouvaras, Andreas January 2022 (has links)
The term Big Data has been gaining importance both at the academic and at the business level. Information technology plays a critical role in shipping since there is a high demand for fast transfer and communication between the parts of a shipping contract. The development of Automatic Identification System (AIS) is intended to improve maritime safety by tracking the vessels and exchange inter-ship information.  This master’s thesis purpose was to a) investigate in which business decisions the Automatic Identification System helps the shipowners and operators (i.e., users), b) find the benefits and perils arisen from its use, and c) investigate the possible improvements based on the users’ perceptions. This master’s thesis is a qualitative study using the interpretivism paradigm. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. A total of 6 people participated with the following criteria: a) position on technical department or DPA or shipowner, b) participating on business decisions, c) shipping company owns a fleet, and d) deals with AIS data. The Thematic Analysis led to twenty-six codes, twelve categories and five concepts. Empirical findings showed that AIS data mostly contributes to make strategic business decisions. Participants are interested in using AIS data to measure the efficiency of their fleet and ports, to estimate the fuel consumption, to reduce their costs, to protect the environment and people’s health, to analyze the trade market, to predict the time of arrival, the optimal route and speed, to maintain highest security levels and to reduce the inaccuracies due to manual input of some AIS attributes. Finally, participants mentioned some AIS challenges including technological improvement (e.g., transponders, antennas) as well as the operation of autonomous vessels.  Finally, this master’s thesis contributes using the prescriptive and descriptive theories and help stakeholders to find new decisions while researchers and developers to advance their products.
482

Empire’s Stores: The Architecture of Conveyance and Corporate Imperialism in America, 1890–1930

Sturtevant, Elliott January 2024 (has links)
This dissertation examines how American businesses’ focus on transportation and trade came to be key agents of US imperialism at the turn of the twentieth century. Extending our understanding of the architecture and urbanism of US industry and commerce, “Empire’s Stores” turns to the design, construction, and maintenance of transnational and transimperial supply chains and the physical infrastructure that made them possible—what I call the architecture of conveyance. Divided into four chapters, the project examines the built environment created by a set of firms and related industries selected geographically: to the West, the “Big Five” sugar factors and their predecessors operating in the Hawaiian Islands; to the North, the Niagara Falls Power Company and related hydroelectric concerns located along the Niagara Frontier; to the South, the United Fruit Company’s operations, including both tourism and trade, anchored in the Port of New Orleans; and, to the East, the storage, handling, and shipment of freight at the Bush Terminal Company in Brooklyn, New York. Through these case studies I show how American corporations produced and profited from imperial formations and, in doing so, reshaped territorial, geographic, and economic borders.
483

A Comprehensive Content and Risk Analysis of Maritime Shipping Operations in Arctic Canada

Rettinger, Connor 19 January 2024 (has links)
Arctic Canada has seen significant ecological changes since the 1990s, leading to sea ice melt, increased temperatures, and increased accessibility to the Northwest Passage. The increased accessibility to the Northwest Passage has allowed for vessels to easily access maritime routes that were not previously accessible. Changes to the Arctic landscape has led to the beginning of open water shipping seasons in Arctic waters, attracting international audiences for trade, tourism, fisheries, and other economic activity. This new passageway increases options for companies to reduce costs in shipping, while also facilitating new and emerging hazards and risks for operational vessels. Comprehensive risk analysis and full assessments need to be completed to aid policy- and decision-makers to support and manage the increasing maritime traffic in Canadian Arctic waters. To fill this knowledge gap, the overarching aim of this master’s level research was to identify and preliminarily evaluate a comprehensive list of hazards (impact drivers) and risks (future impacts) for Maritime ship operations within Arctic Canada and to complete a preliminary assessment of identified maritime shipping hazards and risks throughout Arctic Canada. Hazards and risks were identified using several text-based sources, including social media, grey literature, and peer reviewed journal articles, in order to conduct a comprehensive content analysis to identify the perspectives and trends emerging among the online community. Natural language processing methods were then used, such as word frequencies, word correlation, and topic modelling to identify key phrases, terminology, and thematic groups. This allowed for the creation of an inventory of relevant hazard and risk themes and categories that could be used as a strong basis for informing a risk analysis. Emerging themes included: sea ice, navigability issues, geopolitical concerns, and operational challenges, among others. Following the identification of hazard and risk factors, a ‘failure modes, effects, and criticality analysis’ (FMECA) approach was used, along with a consequence-probability Rettinger ix matrix, as means of performing a preliminary risk analysis. The method enables the collection of information regarding hazard and risk descriptors, consequence, probability, control mechanisms, impacts, and data quality information, to establish a validated risk rating score. Risk rating scores are calculated using consequences and probability scores to determine average risk ratings for individual hazards and risks and at the sector-based category level. A total of 154 variables were inventoried: 55 hazards were identified and 99 risks were noted that influence maritime ship operations in Arctic Canada. Five variables were classified as ‘VERY HIGH’: three hazards (hydrocarbon releases, transportation of dangerous goods, and multiyear sea ice) and two risks (community member displacement and socioeconomic impacts on indigenous peoples). Five thematic groups were seen as priority risk ratings, two of which identified with “HIGH” data quality indexes (Sea Ice, Environmental). A total of 35 hazards and 36 risks are recommended for further investigation, being classified with a ‘VERY HIGH’ or ‘HIGH’ data quality score. Results of this research supports a preliminary attempt at a comprehensive risk analysis that can be used in the future to conduct a full risk assessment.
484

Global IoT Coverage Through Aerial And Satellite Network

Ahmed, Faizan January 2020 (has links)
Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine Type Communication (MTC) have got more momentum in the last few years but still, need to be penetrated with their full swing in our daily life. This can be possible with general framework that provides global network coverage. Non-terrestrial networks comprised of satellites and aerial platforms are expected to provide next-generation communication services in underserved and un-served areas by ensuring the quality of service that cannot be covered by existing terrestrial networks owing to economical and geographical limitations. The aim of this thesis is to formulate a set of massive and critical MTC use cases such as global environment monitoring, tracking of shipping containers and smart agriculture, and assess their comprehensive requirements like data size, sensor node density and uplink capacity and discuss possible network architectures and deployments focusing on satellite or aerial networks. A rigorous discussion on different network architectures to address the requirements have been presented, that involve (1) Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite based network, (2) High Altitude Platform (HAP) based network, and (3) HAP and UAV based network. The proposed network architectures have been simulated and analyzed using MATLAB tools for respective use cases in terms of required number of satellites or aerial platforms. The criteria for selection of network architectures for the use cases are based on the minimum number of satellites or aerial platforms. The results show that LEO constellation consisting of 260 satellites are feasible concerning deployment and management for global environment monitoring network. Similarly, 1440 LEO satellites provide global coverage for tracking of shipping containers. Smart agriculture use case requires high throughput, and hence HAP and UAV integrated network architecture is more realistic for a fully autonomous system as compared to other network architectures. Cooperative control and management of set of agricultural machines can be performed at the UAV. Simulation results show that single UAV can be capable of commanding and controlling the agricultural smart machines in one square kilometer crop field and can send the summary of events to the central station via a HAP. / Internet of Things (IoT) och maskintypkommunikation (MTC) har fått mer fart under de senaste åren men måste fortfarande penetreras med sin fulla sväng i vårt dagliga liv. Detta kan vara möjligt med allmän ramverk som ger global nätverkstäckning. Icke- markbundna nät bestående av satelliter och flygplattformar förväntas tillhandahålla nästa generations kommunikationstjänster i undervärdiga och obetjänade områden genom att säkerställa kvaliteten påtjänster som inte kan täckas av befintliga marknät pågrund av ekonomiska och geografiska begränsningar. Syftet med den här avhandlingen är att formulera en uppsättning massiva och kritiska MTC-användningsfall som global miljöövervakning, spårning av fraktcontainrar och smart jordbruk, och utvärdera deras omfattande krav som datastorlek, sensornoddensitet och upplänkkapacitet och diskutera möjliga nätverk arkitekturer och distributioner med fokus påsatellit- eller flygnät. En rigorös diskussion om olika nätverksarkitekturer för att möta kraven har presenterats, som involverar (1) Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellitbaserat nätverk, (2) High Altitude Platform (HAP) baserat nätverk, och (3) HAP och UAV baserat nätverk. De föreslagna nätverksarkitekturerna har simulerats och analyserats med MATLAB-verktyg för respek- tive användningsfall i termer av det nödvändiga antalet satelliter eller flygplattformar. Kriterierna för val av nätverksarkitekturer för användningsfallen är baserade pådet minsta antalet satelliter eller flygplattformar. Resultaten visar att LEO-konstellationen bestående av 260 satelliter är möjlig när det gäller distribution och hantering för globalt miljöövervakningsnätverk. Påliknande sätt ger 1440 LEO-satelliter global täckning för spårning av fraktcontainrar. Småjordbruksanvändningsfall kräver hög kapacitet, och följaktligen är HAP och UAV integrerad nätverksarkitektur mer realistisk för ett helt autonomt system jämfört med andra nätverksarkitekturer. Kooperativ kontroll och hantering av jordbruksmaskiner kan utföras vid UAV. Simuleringsresultat visar att en enda UAV kan vara kapabel att kommandera och kontrollera jordbrukssmarta maskiner i ett kvadratkilometer grödningsfält och kan skicka sammanfattningen av händelser till centralstationen via HAP.
485

Alternative fuels for Swedish short sea shipping and inland waterways: Techno-economic study

Maszelin, Julien January 2022 (has links)
Climate change is raising huge challenges for all industries worldwide. It is mainly due to anthropogenic activity and energy consumption which is the cause for emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG) among other environmental impacts and is expected to have huge impact on our societies globally. Of those global GHG emissions, around a quarter is emitted by transportations of all kinds as transportation relies heavily on fossil fuels. If the past years have seen a rising share of electrification within the passenger car industry, the commercial transportation isn’t that prone to electrification and other pathway to decarbonization are studied. Shipping is responsible for around 90% of the world commercial transportation work and therefore is a keyplayer in the transition toward low carbon transportation. It relies exclusively on fossil fuels with different kinds of oil-based fuels being the historical fuel suppliers and has seen a quick increase of the share of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the past decade. Yet the international maritime organization (IMO) has set ambitious emission reduction targets for shipping and alternative fuel technologies are considered to be a relevant pathway if not the most promising pathway to low carbon or even zero carbon shipping. This study aims at evaluating and comparing different alternative fuels pathways available to perform the shift toward low carbon fuel technologies within Swedish short sea shipping (SSS) and inland waterway transportation (IWT) based on a set of criteria designed to reflect all aspects of the implementation of an alternative fuel pathway implementation. Those criteria are divided into 5 different categories which are technological, technical, economic, environmental, and finally social. There are 2 main categories to consider for low carbon fuels, biofuels and electrofuels. Fossil fuels are also included within the study so that the alternative pathways get compared not only with one another but also with the current marine fuels. The first comparison between different alternative fuel pathways is relevant to choose the most promising and feasible one while the comparison between a chosen alternative fuelpathway and the main marine fossil fuels is what stakeholders will look at when considering an alternativefuel pathway implementation challenge. The electrofuels included within the comparison are ammonia and hydrogen within 2 similar pathways which include production using water electrolysis and renewableelectricity (the carbon intensity of the Swedish grid is considered) before consumption within fuel cells (FC)instead of internal combustion engines (ICE). Those electrofuels end up with the last ranks within the comparison due to low technological maturity, technical and economic challenges remaining and social issued to address despite being the most environmentally promising pathways. Biofuel’s pathways on the other hand include both fischer tropsch diesel (FTD) and bio-methanol production using as feedstock various mixes of black liquor (BL) andpyrolysis oil (PO). FTD ends up as the most promising alternative fuel pathway within the whole studywhile bio-methanol appears more challenging but also more promising toward environmental criteria. / Klimatförändringarna innebär stora utmaningar för alla branscher världen över. Den beror främst på antropogen aktivitet och energikonsumtion som orsakar utsläpp av växthusgaser bland andra miljöeffekter och förväntas få stora konsekvenser för våra samhällen globalt. Av de globala utsläppen av växthusgaser kommer omkring en fjärdedel från alla typer av transporter, eftersom transporterna är starkt beroende avfossila bränslen. Under de senaste åren har man sett en ökande andel elektrifiering inom personbilsindustrin,men kommersiella transporter är inte lika benägna att elektrifieras och andra vägar till avkolning studeras. Sjöfarten står för cirka 90 % av världens kommersiella transportarbete och är därför en nyckelspelare i övergången till koldioxidsnåla transporter. Den är uteslutande beroende av fossila bränslen med olika typer av oljebaserade bränslen som historiska bränsleleverantörer och har sett en snabb ökning av andelen flytande naturgas (LNG) under det senaste decenniet. Internationella sjöfartsorganisationen (IMO) har dock fastställt ambitiösa mål för minskning av utsläppen för sjöfarten, och tekniker för alternativa bränslen anses vara enr elevant väg, om inte den mest lovande, för att uppnå en sjöfart med låga koldioxidutsläpp eller till och med utan koldioxidutsläpp. Syftet med denna studie är att utvärdera och jämföra olika alternativa bränslen som finns tillgängliga för att genomföra övergången till bränsleteknik med låga koldioxidutsläpp inom svensk närsjöfart (SSS) och transport på inre vattenvägar (IWT) utifrån en uppsättning kriterier som är utformade för att återspegla alla aspekter av genomförandet av en alternativ bränslesatsning. Dessa kriterier är indelade i fem olika kategorier som är tekniska, tekniska, ekonomiska, miljömässiga och slutligen sociala. Det finns två huvudkategorier att ta hänsyn till när det gäller bränslen med låga koldioxidutsläpp, nämligen biobränslen och elektrobränslen. Fossila bränslen ingår också i studien så att de alternativa vägarna inte bara jämförs med varandra utan också med de nuvarande marina bränslena. Den första jämförelsen mellan olika alternativa bränslevägar är relevant för att välja den mest lovande och genomförbara, medan jämförelsen mellan en vald alternativ bränsleväg och de viktigaste marina fossila bränslena är vad intressenterna kommer att titta på när de överväger att genomföra en alternativ bränsleväg. De elektrobränslen som ingår i jämförelsen är ammoniak och vätgas inom två liknande vägar som omfattar produktion med hjälp av vattenelektrolys och förnybar el (det svenska elnätets koldioxidintensitet beaktas) innan de förbrukas i bränsleceller i stället för i förbränningsmotorer. Dessa elektrobränslen hamnar på de sista platserna i jämförelsen på grund av låg teknisk mognad, återstående tekniska och ekonomiska utmaningar och sociala problem som måste lösas, trots att de är de miljömässigt mest lovande vägarna. Biobränslevägar omfattar å andra sidan både fischer tropsch diesel(FTD) och produktion av biometanol med olika blandningar av svartlut (BL) och pyrolysolja (PO) som råmaterial. FTD är den mest lovande alternativa bränslevägen i hela studien, medan bio-metanol verkar vara en större utmaning men också mer lovande när det gäller miljökriterier.
486

Temporary urban regeneration: a systematic approach for a multi-system life cycle assessment

Alhamdan, Ziyad Saleh 07 February 2023 (has links)
This research attempts to evaluate temporary urban regeneration potential by integrating two systems that make up an interim intervention which addresses an observed problem. The research proposes a systematic approach for a multi-system life cycle assessment model which lays out the process of working with two separate systems to provide a pathway for temporary urban development strategies. To achieve this, the research starts with identifying parameters of temporary urban regeneration through a systematic review of the literature. Key parameters are categorized based on objectives, indicators, as well as, physical characteristics of the literature explored case studies. Then, the findings are utilized to guide the proposed model of connecting two given systems to assess their joint impacts on a temporary urban regeneration system. The proposed MSLCA framework utilizes a holistic modeling structure with a process to integrate and analyze separate systems and quantify results for overall sustainability performance. Finally, the model is used to evaluate a case study involving two systems that address observed problems and provide urban services. The results explore the environmental impacts of the proposed intervention and highlight the effects of individual components on both systems. Through the implementation of the model, decisions on temporary urban intervention are guided by hotspots in the results. The findings reveal an opportunity for future research to expand the model's application to other processes and further its scope beyond environmental indicators. Subsequent studies can investigate opportunities for a holistic approach that includes economic and social aspects. / Doctor of Philosophy / The way we live in cities is heavily influenced by how they are planned. Improvident city planning could deny residents opportunities to enjoy some basic urban amenities. These problems could be self-induced as they are often a result of planning, policies, or personal habits and choice. Planners, urban designers, and regulators are constantly experimenting with different tools of urban regeneration to rediscover genuine urban experiences. This research sets out to investigate opportunities for temporary urban interventions on vacant lands in the city of Riyadh through repurposing idle shipping containers as a tool. This is to address the issues of a lack of urban services within residential subdivisions in the city, the high prevalence of vacant lands, and a wide availability of decommissioned shipping containers. The use of shipping containers for non-cargo purposes has seen an increased interest among architects and designers for their versatility and accessibility. Empty container accumulation is often a result of an unbalanced trading system which is mainly an issue of import-based countries. Therefore, the upcycling potential of intermodal containers can extend their life cycles and take advantage of their structure. It also maximizes the environmental returns of their raw materials. Through such processes of circular economy, potential waste objects can be repurposed as resources into usable structures and thus avoids the use and extraction of new raw materials. It is generally thought that the repurposing of shipping containers into building structures introduces environmental advantages when compared to traditional construction. Similarly, vacant lands are a valuable and well-established resource that can provide the setting for temporary urban interventions. Finding a joint productive use of these systems is at the center of this research as it attempts to assess the urban regeneration value of their merged utility during their idle stage. This helps address a key challenge that most urban area suffers from which is the lack of easily accessible and timely deployable temporary urban intervention to serve a particular use. This research aims to create a model that evaluates the lifecycles of temporary uses based on the joint intersection of contributing systems. The proposed Multi-System Life Cycle Assessment (MSLCA) model is to be applied to assess temporary urban regeneration interventions and help make decisions regarding appropriate approaches. The goal of the model is to propose a value-based approach based on characteristics from two systems. The resulting MSLCA model answers questions on how to apply LCA processes to a transitional intervention with new processes. In doing so, it highlights parameters for systems integration and processes for planning appropriate scenarios for urban interventions. It also highlights the need for unique system boundaries and specifies approaches for system assessment and interpretation. Finally, it provides broader impact categories beyond environmental impacts to consider specific economic and social indicators.
487

我國國際海運政策之研究─從保護到解制之變革 / A Study of Taiwan's International Shipping Policy: From Protection to Deregulation

楊繼明, Young, Aaron Unknown Date (has links)
戰後台灣的政治安定,立基於經濟發展,經濟發展取決於貿易傳動。在全球化的時代,經貿是台灣積極串聯世界、爭取生存茁壯的關鍵樞紐;對四面環海的台灣而言,能源及原物料之進口與轉化後財貨之對外貿易,全賴於海運實踐,台灣以一個海島型經濟型態「不斷向世界市場擴張」的過程中,國際海運是國家經濟與世界市場的實質聯結。國際海運因而成為台灣迎向全球與經貿發展的生命線,政軍安定的守護神。 本文主要的目的,在探討戰後(1950~2005)我國國際海運政策的治理模式與治理政策。台灣四面環海,具有發展國際海運的地理優勢,比較世界各國的發展,台灣地區的國際海運經營與發展,在世界上一直佔有相當重要的地位。然而,近年來,由於中國大陸的崛起,台灣則基於自身的考量,執行「戒急用忍」政策,遲遲不開放兩岸通航與協商航商西進,使得台灣的經濟優勢逐漸流失,國輪航商之經營環境也隨之惡化,本研究藉由歷史與結構的研究途徑,從戰後我國國際海運發展的歷史脈絡與結構變遷,就其治理模式與治理策略進行深入的探討。 除了經由文獻探討中,檢視我國國際海運政策的變革之外,進一步與我國國際海運的公經理人、學者與業者等共三十位專業人士,進行實證的訪問調查,獲得第一手的資料,然後與文獻分析所得相互驗證,進而歸納成結論,並就我國國際海運政策的治理模式與治理策略,提出建言。 / Abstract: Comparing with the development of other countries, water-surrounded Taiwan has to build up its international shipping industry to facilitate international trade and therefore stabilize its polity through economic development. Due to the geographic privilege, Taiwan also has its strength of developing international shipping for linking the national economy and the world market. The objective of this study is to explore the governance mode and strategies of Taiwan’s international shipping policy after the World War II. This study investigated the relationships among international politics, macroeconomic and international trade, government policy, and industry environment for the international shipping policy. In addition to literature review, this study interviewed public managers, scholars and industrial professionals to empirically collect the experienced data by “in-depth interview.” Through the integrated means, this study concludes that Taiwan’s international shipping policy has played an important role for developing the industry in each stage of Taiwan’s development on economy and international trade, whilst the government in Taiwan should seek more practical governance modes and strategies to cope with the challenges to come.
488

Modern piracy the impact on maritime security.

Mansfield, Charles T. January 2008 (has links) (PDF)
Thesis (Master of Military Studies)--USMC Command and Staff College, 2008. / Title from PDF title screen. Text document in PDF format. Includes bibliographical references (p. 21-22).
489

Navigating Sustainability : A case study exploring alternative energy sources for maritime shipping / Navigerar hållbarhet : En fallstudie som undersöker alternativa energikällor till fraktfartyg

Nordenskiöld, Simon January 2024 (has links)
This master thesis studies alternative energy sources for maritime shipping in Sweden. With current climate goals, and a need for change, the maritime sector currently undergoes intense transitions. For shipping companies to lower their carbon footprint, the need to replace non decarbonised fuels is hence critical. With numerous alternatives, currently being developed, actors are phasing obstacles regarding which energy source that is most mature in terms of technical readiness as well as how adequate it will fulfil current climate goals. This study will analyse four different energy sources, liquid hydrogen (LH2), electro-methanol (emethanol), electro-ammonia (e-ammonia) and wind (sails), and answer which out of these energy sources will be most suitable for actors to adapt. To answer this question, the Technological Innovation System framework has been utilised, and the results has been applied to some chosen climate target actions developed by Swedish authorities. The findings proved that e-methanol currently is most mature and has reached most alignment with current climate goals, followed by LH2/wind and lastly e-ammonia. / Detta examensarbete studerar alternativa energikällor för fraktfartyg i Sverige. Med nuvarande klimatmål, och ett behov av förändring, genomgår den maritima sektorn intensiva omställningar. För att rederier ska kunna sänka sitt koldioxidavtryck är behovet att ersätta icke koldioxidneutrala bränslen därför stort. Med ett flertal alternativ, som för närvarande är under utveckling, står aktörer inför hinder angående vilken energikälla som är mest redo gällande teknikmognadsgrad samt hur adekvat den kommer att uppfylla nuvarande klimatmål. Denna studie kommer att analysera fyra olika energikällor, flytande väte (LH2), elektro-metanol (e-metanol), elektro-ammoniak (e-ammoniak) och vind (segel), och ta reda på vilka av dessa energikällor som är mest lämpad för aktörer att använda sig av. För att svara på denna fråga har ramverket Technological Innovation Systems använts och resultaten har tillämpats på några utvalda klimatmålsåtgärder som tagits fram av svenska myndigheter. Resultaten visade att e-metanol för närvarande är mest mogen och har nått mest anpassning till nuvarande klimatmål, följt av LH2/vind och slutligen e-ammoniak.
490

An investigation into the illegal movement of goods from seaports-of-entry : a case study at Durban harbour

Moodley, Devandran Mogambery 02 1900 (has links)
Seaports, or harbours, play a vital role in the logistical supply chain, since they handle the largest volumes of containerised cargo and bulk goods that enter any country. Over the decades, globalisation and free trade have resulted in increased movement of cargo and people through the sea ports. The security functions in all categories of the ports are of paramount importance, seeing that border posts or ports are the main entry and exit points of any country. The marine transport system is responsible for 95-98 per cent of South Africa’s imports and exports. South Africa’s maritime sector, and in particular its eight commercial ports-of-entry, play a major role in the South African economy, as well as those of South Africa’s neighbouring landlocked countries. As a result of the volume of cargo containers passing through these ports, it is often challenging to detect or even examine all of the cargo that enters or leaves the port. A 2007 report titled ‘The collective approach to Border Control’ states that the movement of illegal goods crossing South African borders is in the amount of 20 billion Rand per year. The illegal movement of goods represents an enormous loss to South Africa in terms of revenue, as well as customs and excise duties, and negatively impacts on the confidence of our international investors. One of South Africa’s busiest seaports-of-entry is the Durban harbour. This study sought to investigate the challenges presented by the illegal movement of goods through Durban harbour. The research sought to establish how the goods were being moved illegally through the Durban harbour area. The focus is on the security risk control measures that should control the illegal movement of goods from the Durban Harbour. The objectives of this study were: to examine the existing security risk control measures at the Durban harbour; to assess the risks associated with the illegal movement of goods at the Durban harbour; and to identify the security risk control measures required to prevent the illegal movement of goods at the Durban harbour. The study made use of the qualitative research approach to research the unlawful transfer of goods entering through seaports. Three methods of data collection were used. These were a documentary study of police case dockets, an onsite security audit of the Durban harbour, and face-to-face interviews between the researcher and the interviewees in accordance with an interview schedule. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the SAPS Border Police, customs officials and security officials who were stationed at the Durban harbour. Thirty (30) sample respondents were individually interviewed by the interviewer. An analysis of fifty (50) police dockets which were registered on the SAPS crime administration system for ‘Theft and Contraband Smuggling’ were also analysed, where the scene-of-crime was the Durban harbour. In addition, an onsite evaluation of the current security measures at the Durban harbour was conducted. All of the data collected was analysed using a data-spiral method, which generated themes and categories. The findings established that there are shortcomings or gaps within the existing security measures for the prevention of, and safeguarding the harbour as a port against, criminal risks or security weaknesses. Accordingly, the researcher has recommended certain measures that should assist in eliminating or reducing the associated criminal risks affecting the harbour. / Criminology and Security Science / M. Tech. (Security Management)

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