July 18, 2023

Today was another travel day. We woke up at 7 am to take a train from Valencia to Madrid, which took 2 1/2 hours and was delayed. This meant we had to sprint through the train station from one terminal to the next, which took us 45 mins with approximately 20 seconds to spare to board our other train to go to Barcelona. The train to Barcelona took another 2 1/2 hours. The whole time I caught up on homework for both of the classes, so at least it was a productive travel day. We had the last class in the afternoon and then went to dinner at Centonze. It was probably the best dinner we have had since arriving. Afterward, the student hung out for the last hours of our last day. Overall it was a fantastic trip, and I am so happy to have met everyone. Going home is a bittersweet feeling, but we all already have plans to hang out together a few says after we returned back to the US, so I am so excited.

July 17, 2023

We started the morning with a tour of Raminatrans, a logistics company that handles transportation and freight based in Ribarroja. We had the opportunity to take a tour of their warehouse and a presentation while we explored the warehouse. The warehouse operations typically hold the stock for a medium to a long amount of time for customers. They considered themselves a buffer warehouse with connections to the Port of Valencia. They receive the containers, deconsolidate, and stock the goods, or sometimes they send them to another warehouse or to the final customer. They are the biggest logistics company in Spain, according to the presenter. I liked the fun fact he added, saying the warehouse itself used to be a manufacturing location for Hasbro. We learned about the two different departments within the building, the operations/management department and the warehouse department, which handles more of the manual labor side of the warehouse, whereas the operations department handles more of the logistics coordination of the freight. He also discussed concepts I was very familiar with, such as Last free days, demurrage, deconsolidation and detention, and activities that I have to deal with and coordinate on a day-to-day basis at my job. The sheer size of the warehouse itself was astonishing, with a wide variety of products varying from Kymco, their biggest customer who manufactures motorbikes, to honey, cacao, rice paper for newspapers, and dishwashers, among many other goods.  We were also shown the refrigerated part of the warehouse that, honestly, the cold was a shock to the system after being out in the Spanish heat for so long. He explained that they had to put in a cooling floor before building the warehouse itself, which seems like a ton of work, and then explained that they plan on adding a frozen section as well to the warehouse.

Questions:

• What paperwork is needed other than a Bill of lading, AN, and packing list?
  • He explained that they also require paperwork that may be specific to that was specific to the warehouse and Raminatran’s own operations, such as a CMR (similar to a bill of lading for road transport, which I had never heard of before), paperwork for bonded cargo, customs clearance or decline, and paperwork do the treatment and handling of the products.

After, we went to lunch at Pata Negra and had a variety of foods, including pea soup, a blended gazpacho type thing, codfish, chips, and guacamole, a type of thinly sliced bacon in oil and peppers? There were a ton of different foods. It was really cool to have a lot of items that many of us had never had before.

I went to visit the beach after lunch and try and relax on my last day in Valencia. It was very nice. However, I realized after watching kids on the beach playing soccer that I really missed playing and made it my mission for the day to find somewhere to play. I walked a round trip 6 miles to the beach and then an additional 3 around the city to try and find ANYWHERE that I could play a pickup soccer game. I asked almost every person wearing a jersey or indoor soccer shoes on the street where I could play, and everyone pointed me in different directions. Finally, I ran into these two boys who were wearing cleats and had a soccer ball. They invited me to come to play a pickup game with them, and I was beyond excited.

Today was easily the best day in Valencia because I had the opportunity to play the sport I love in a country that is extremely passionate about it. Being able to meet and play with the boys who grew up in Valencia, who immediately welcomed me and asked which team I support between Barcelona and Madrid. The correct answer is Madrid, by the way. It was a great ending to the trip and quite possibly my favorite part.

July 13, 2023

We started the morning at a cafe, and I have found my new favorite way to drink coffee in the morning is an espresso shot with sweetened condensed milk. So so good! We then took a group trip to the Fundacion Valenciaport. We learned about the different locations the València ports consist of, Sagunto, València, and Gandia. The presenter discussed the plane for the northern terminal expansion. She emphasized that it is not possible for them to build further out into the water, so they have to expand longways. She explained how Valencia is more so a container port whereas Barcelona is more of a passenger terminal, which was very interesting to learn after hearing the stats of the Barcelona’s port. The emphasis on the importance of locations for ports. The Valenica port is what she considered the “doorway to the Mediterranean and the international sphere. For example, China is the #1 country of origin/destination for container traffic handled in Valencia. Along with Valencia’s geographical location near the canal between Africa and Spain, Valencia is also closest to the largest dry port in Spain, Madrid. The Valencia Port, like every other port and firm we talked to discussed their project of zero net emissions. Their plan is to continue to introduce more energy transitions such as wind and photovoltaic, using LNG in ships, using hydrogen in port machinery. They also plan to reach zero emissions in their passenger terminal, the container yard will be electrified, and the new northern terminal expansion will be zero emissions.

Questions:

• In comparison to the Barcelona port, does the València port or Barcelona handle more international movement? I feel like València location wise would have more of an opportunity, but size wise, I also feel like Barcelona has the machinery and traffic to move more internationally
  • She answered that because of Valencias location on the Mediterranean and proximity to the ATlantic, Valencia has the advantage of quicker movement to locations. However, she also reiterated that Barcelona is more of a passenger port than Valencia’s dominantly container port. Therefore, more cruises and vessels transporting individuals go to Barcelona because of its geographical proximity to the rest of Europe.
• In regards to the railway system connecting Valencia, Barcelona, and Madrid, is Valencia or Barcelona have the advantage in the use and movement of freight via cargo
  • Valencia is located closer to Madrid in the Spain railway system allowing it to move freight to the dry port of Madrid quicker and with a lower cost than Barcelona.

We were then given a presentation on the Fundacion de Valenciaport itself and its purpose. The Fundacion de Valenciaport is a center of applied research and an innovation training center that contributes to the knowledge and management of the Valencia port as well as assist in projects for other international ports. They work with international institutions, governments exporters and importers, dry ports, railways, Ro-ro terminals, bulk and multipurpose terminals, etc. in efforts of improving the operations and effects socially, economically, and environmentally fro their clients. They presented several of their projects they are working on such as Project planet, I Terminal Project, Green C Ports, H2ports, Praetorian, Asignat Project, along with a multitude of others in hopes of improving the logistics industry as a whole. My personal favorite to learn about was the Asignat Project, which is a plan to start implementing fuel cells and hydrogen technologies in ports and will be the first ever implementation of hydrogen technologies in port handling equipment in Europe.

Questions:

• Is there a Valenciano and Spanish language requirements?
  • I had learned from the tour at the Ciudad de Artes y las Ciencias that many jobs require individuals to learn both Valenciano and Spanish. Valenciano I learned is similar to Catalan and Basque as in it is the language of that particular region of Spain region. Simply put she said no there are no requirements to learn both but many individuals who have lived in Valencia know both anyway.
• is the zero emissions goal in 2023 something that’s being enforced on the government level or just an effort from the ports themselves?
  • She explained that it is not a law that has been enforced by the Spanish government but instead an effort from the individual ports to improve the state of the climate. Simultaneously, the emissions and the effects of the ports affect the population of the city it resides in so not only is it an effort to help the climate but it is also a way to better the lives of the individuals who work at the port andlive around the port.

We also received a presentation specifically on the OpenTop project, an effort to make safer, smarter, and more efficient ports through implementing more open communication between internal and external parties, increase digitalization, combatting climate change projects, and improving the trade tech fund. She discussed that concepts of the project involve developing innovative concepts for port logistics, training with new technologies, supporting startups while establishing win-win relationships, the venture capital fund for startups, and building on port labs to test new technologies for the port. 

Afterwards, we took transit to lunch at Fum de Llum. We had delicious Valencian starters and HUGE paella dishes in the largest cast iron skillets I have ever seen. Summer and I walked to go get Boba after and realized how much more processed America’s foods are. The boba place we went to had real taro in it, and we thought it wasn’t nearly as good as at home. After, we headed back to the hotel to do homework, do laundry, and pack for our trip tomorrow.

For dinner, we went to a sushi restaurant called Fuji and ate all-you-can-eat sushi. Afterward we went back to the Ciudad de las Arte y las Ciencias to experience the rooftop.

July 12, 2023

Overall, the day was pretty uneventful, which was really lovely after going 100 mph yesterday. We started the morning very early to travel to Valencia. We took one train from Barcelona to Madrid, which took 2 hours. Then took another from Madrid to Valencia for another 2 hours. Once we arrived in Valencia, we took taxis to Hotel Olympia. We had a walking tour that evening at the Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias and learned about the famous architect named Calatrava. The whole area was absolutely stunning. We learned that he never used right angles and almost always included an opening and closing eye in his later designs. They were elaborate, modern, and the incorporation of plants and water everywhere made it even more beautiful. We ended the night at an Italian restaurant called La Femelle. We got a ton of delicious starters and, for dinner, had pizzas and pasta. After dinner, we walked through the historic part of the city and saw the Valencian Cathedral and the surrounding area.

July 11, 2023

Today we started the morning super early and traveled to the port of Barcelona to receive a tour and a presentation. The presenter began by emphasizing that Barcelona is the logistics hub for Europe and the Mediterranean Strategic Vision. There are different port categories, including old port authority providing services directly, your port, where the port is the owner of the land and the private companies have contracts with port authorities; and a landlord port where the state gives land/some control to companies investing in the space. We learned that Barcelona’s port mission included goals such as creating added value to the surrounding economy, providing better logistics solutions end to end from the existing ones by sustainable growth (economic, social, environmental), digitalization, and improvement in reducing carbon emissions. Barcelona Port has also introduced the IV Strategic Plan 2021-2025. The port’s mission is to promote prosperity in the community by increasing its clients’ competitiveness through the provision of efficient and sustainable logistics and transport services. The presenter also explained the objectives for sustainability environmentally, economically, and socially. The environmental goals included hopes of energy transitions by means of developing new energy models, decarbonization, reducing pollution, and increasing intermodality. Economic sustainability goals aim to increase the port’s competitive advantage by diversifying port business, differentiating the offer of services, attracting new logistics activity, and developing the required infrastructure. Socially their goal is to focus on human capital by promoting training, employment, entrepreneurship and attracting talent, promoting equal opportunity, integration of the port in its urban sectors, and ensuring people and facilities’ health and security. The main focus of the presentation, though was the emphasis on the port’s goals of environmental sustainability. The promotion of rebates for green vessels using renewable energy and rechargeable batteries and a waterfront electrification program, among many other efforts, will contribute to the Port of Barcelona’s environmental sustainability project. One fact that particularly stood out to me was the ranking of the Barcelona Port, which is 1st in the Mediterranean and 4th in Europe when it comes to vessel traffic. 

After the presentation, we learned and discussed the different aspects of the port and traveled around the port on a really beautiful boat with a guide. She discussed the importance of the differing cranes and who owned and operated each terminal, as well as the water depth and the size of the boats it allowed to let in.

We saw all of the terminals, several huge cruise ships, and the cranes that loaded and unload the containers from the vessels and onto trucks or to sit at the port until being transported elsewhere. It was a very cool experience and really amazing to see the comparison between the operations of the Charleston Port and then Barcelona Port.

After our time at the Port of Barcelona, we took the metro to go have lunch at el Raco del Cargol, where we had traditional Catalan food.

In the afternoon, we met with the operating manager of Operinter and the Alonso Group in the afternoon. Operinter is a global logistics company that handles air, sea, rail, and road transport, warehousing, and distribution and benefits by having offices domestically in Spain and internationally. He emphasized that the company’s biggest goals are growth and speed in every step of its journey. He also showed some pretty cool and well-put-together promotion videos for his company. Oddly enough, this is something I acknowledged at many of the companies and ports we visited. Many had promotion videos that were really well put together and oddly high quality for the industry, something that I have not experienced or seen at any other visits or meetings with logistics companies in the US from my personal experience. I thought it was kind of bizarre because I was not used to cinematic art for a logistics company. Like every other company and port we visited, the operating manager at Operinter emphasized their goals of environmental sustainability. Their focuses revolved around decarbonization, renewable energies (solar/air), decrease in waste, intermodality, promoting green hydrogen as a source of energy, and innovation and connecting data for more connected interactions. He also informed us of the company’s efforts in teaching customers to package properly to reduce waste, emissions, optimize space, decrease costs, etc. The company is a freight forwarder, so its job is to organize the transport of freight from point A to point B. They don’t, however, own any means of transportation except a few trucks. He finished the presentation by discussing the digital age of logistics with us and the way the company involves new technology in its operations, such as high-quality tracking and advanced software, to optimize efficiency and transparency throughout the supply chain.

Questions I asked:

• How big are the warehouses?
  • 1 mil sqm of their own warehouses
• What database do you use mainly? (I am familiar with TOM, Cargowise, Moira, as well as Exworks at my own job)
  • They use their own developed database/software that is only used by Operinter. However, he did acknowledge a disconnect when using another company as the import or export agent for a shipment. For example, if I were to be using Cargowise and they were using their own database to share information, the information would come back a little distorted on both sides.

I particularly enjoyed this presentation because I am so familiar with the procedures and processes of the positions and jobs included in a Freight Forwarding/Logistics company so it was much easier for me to relate, connect and understand the Operinter and their goals and services. Simultaneously, the presenter, the managing director named Carlos, was probably one of the nicest presenters we’ve had so far.

We finished the day with packing, homework, dinner, and celebrating our last night in Barcelona before our train ride tomorrow morning to Valencia.

July 10, 2023

This morning we had a guest lecture on Logistics Management at Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona. The presenter gave us a crash course on logistics which was extremely beneficial for someone like me who had not taken a logistics or supply chain management class yet. The presenter provided a definition of logistics as being “the organization of moving goods from a starting location to the final destination,” which, when put in that context, made it sound so simple compared to the real-world logistics environment. He discussed that the main goals for logistics were to reduce cost, time and increase efficiency levels. He provided an example that really put things into perspective for me and said that preparing for an exam can be dealt with logistically. It is an attempt to receive the best result on the exam with the least amount of costs and in the least amount of time. He then dove into the concept of logistics management, where the objective is to plan and coordinate all the activities necessary to achieve the desired level of service and quality at the lowest possible cost. He further emphasized that the ultimate purpose of any logistics system is to satisfy the customer by establishing linkages of people at all levels in the organization directly or indirectly to the marketplace. He introduced the idea of the 7 R’s in logistics in flux, which I had subconsciously considered but had never really listed out to really examine. They are the right time, right place, the right price, right product, right quantity, right customer, and right condition. We then watched a video on logistics that emphasized the popularity of online shopping and showed the shipment of a package from procurement to the final destination while discussing possible inconveniences and uncontrollable events that may occur where the logistics industry must adapt to and find a solution. We also discussed the future of automated logistics. The video also showed the DHL distribution center and the combination of human labor, artificial intelligence, robots, and technology that increases productivity at the distribution center and the warehouses. I found the video called Inside Amazon’s Smart Warehouse very interesting and eye-opening. The company is successful because of the lightning-fast delivery times, even having the capability to deliver in under 24 hours. They described it as “a symphony of humans and machines working together.”We learned that Amazon’s website and app use deep knowledge AI to know what you’re going to buy weeks or months before you buy it, which honestly traumatized me a little bit, being an avid Amazon shopper. We also discussed the different modes of transportation along with the benefits and consequences of each of them socially, economically, and environmentally. 

Questions I asked during the lecture:

• what are your opinions on autonomous logistics? 
  • he responded with a concern about investments in automation. Big companies have the funding to make the investment but also hold more of a monopoly over the industry, such as those in the US, whereas compared to Europe, whose main companies in logistics are smaller and it’s a large investment to automate. It’s also difficult to find individuals that are professional enough to handle the new and advanced technology
• What large ports can you think of that have automated their operations and have excelled because of it?
  • He answered that the most important ports in the world are incorporating more and more automation. The most important US ports are Newark/NYC and LA. In China, it’s Hong Kong and Tianjin, and in Europe, the biggest is Rotterdam.

The place we went for lunch, called La Pepa, was funny because the manager and staff kept getting mad at us for not finishing our food even though we were all so so full. The food was so good!!! We headed back to the hotel and had a class on supply chain with Dr. G, which is always a good, fun, and educational time. We discussed lean tools and six sigma, which were essential concepts to help us look at the organizational and operational aspects of the firms and organizations we visited.

The rest of the day consisted of doing homework, and I met up with friends I met at the hostel in Malaga for dinner at a rooftop restaurant.

July 9, 2023

Today we had a lazy, free day. Summer and I pretty much laid in bed all day in the air conditioning until around 4 pm. Air Conditioning in Spain is quite literally a luxury. Every day of the trip, the temperatures averaged around 95-100F so having the opportunity to be in air conditioning at all was a blessing. We ended up leaving to go get a late lunch at a pizza restaurant near Passeig de Gracia, which is near all the popular shops. It is so busy in that area, but we definitely did some damage shopping yet again. I find it interesting how cheap everything is here compared to the United States, so that’s kind of how we’re justifying our purchases. Summer and I walked around and pretty much shopped until around 8:30 pm. We had a pretty calm evening, and I went to dinner with Summer at Mood Rooftop. From the rooftop, we were able to see the Barcelona skyline, the beach, and the port. It was absolutely beautiful. We took tons of pictures and got Mediterranean food. We ended the night with gelato!

July 8, 2023

Today we had quite the late start after such a long day yesterday. But we started the day at a cafe and then took a trip to Park Guell. I don’t think I have ever sweat so much in my life. We walked for 15 minutes straight up hill to the park and up approximately 400 stairs. I should also add in that I grew up on Hilton Head so I never had to encounter hills/mountains such as this. It was quite the workout. The park was absolutely beautiful once arriving. We also found a beautiful lookout over the whole Barcelona city and the ocean after leaving the park. We walked into every tourist shop we could find to look for the cheesiest souvenirs to bring home. I found it hilarious that every tourist shop was selling the exact same things in each one. We took the metro back to the hotel and relaxed for a little before wandering around the city more during our free time and doing loads of shopping. We went to Zara, Bershka, Pull&Bear, HM, and many boutiques that were so much cheaper and more beautiful than those in the United States. I also took a little excursion to make my own jewelry at a cute little shop near the Barcelona beach. We ended up going to an amazing restaurant for dinner that had plants and trees everywhere inside called Taragaluz. We had tuna carpaccio and croquettes as well as some delicious pasta. An awesome Saturday in Barcelona!!!

July 7, 2023

This morning we had the opportunity to visit Consorci and Estoko. We learned about the 3incubator non-profit 3D printing whose goal is to 3D print and increase the Barcelona Metropolitan area economy. Estoko logistics was very interesting to learn about because it differs widely from the logistics company, I am familiar with and work for. Estoko’s main interest is to coordinate the use of warehouses and to optimize space in the available warehouses in Spain, Portugal, and southern France. I was very curious about the transportation aspect of the company because he also admitted that most of the profit comes from the transportation side of logistics. Estoko explained that he wanted to stay away from the trucking, sea, and air legs of the transportation to avoid a liability on his hands. I asked him why he would not take advantage of being able to make a profit from transportation and furthermore increase his revenue and overall he seemed to be strongly against this idea and aimed to push his customers more towards using his partners for those aspects of the shipment. However, I did enjoy that he touched on the importance of his companies attempts to be eco-friendly. Estoko reduced 30% of carbon emissions by providing warehouses near the pickup/destination locations. Overall, it was a very insightful visit and was amazing to see successful startup businesses in the logistics and innovation networks. In the afternoon we had lunch and did two more tours with Marga. We walked around the Mercat de la Boqueria and saw the fresh produce, fish, meat, and cheese vendors. Afterwards, we took the train to the Sagrada Familia and took part in a guided audio tour around the temple and the surrounding school. The inside was absolutely beautiful, and I particularly enjoyed the stained-glass windows.

July 6, 2023

After, arriving in Barcelona I was beyond happy to see people related to home. After being sick the past few days, alone in a foreign country, it was a HUGE relief to meet people I had never met. Oddly enough, everyone felt familiar at the same time solely because they were a connection to home, something I hadn’t had in the past 2 weeks. After arriving at the hotel, we had the opportunity to meet Marga who seemed very passionate about our tours and cultural immersion in Barcelona. Afterwards, we decided to wander around and shop a good bit. We had to figure out the way of the roads and as a group we were a bit confused even with apple maps. Eventually we went shopping at HM, Zara, and a large designer mall. It was a fun way to spend our free time while walking around and getting to know each other. We parted ways to allow us all to fit in taxis and Matt and I ended up heading straight to the restaurant which allowed us to take in the scenery, streets, and historical buildings surrounding the hotel. Dinner was amazing and the company was even better! I particularly enjoyed walking around with Dr. G and telling angry men to high five each other, probably the highlight of my day. I am so excited to spend more time with this group and for the amazing experiences to come!