Attending Companies Included:
Conference Positioning Overview
The Port of the Future Conference offered corporate leaders, trade and logistics professionals, government officials, and leading researchers a collaborative, networking opportunity to examine an expanding and evolving vision of future Ports of Entry.
Port of the Future was shaped by research and innovation, advances in technology, increased dependence on automation, enhancements in data security and information sharing, and heightened environmental compliance – all impacting the ability to rapidly and securely move cargo and people across international borders.
The Port of the Future Conference focuseed on creating and revitalizing our Nation’s ports, infrastructure, and processes - across air, maritime, land, and cyber domains. You heard from government and industry leaders on their visions for Ports of the Future, projected trends and emerging challenges, promising research, and new, cutting-edge technology.
We engaged in presentations and discussions to:
- Expand and evolve the roles of airports, seaports, and land ports of entry in a modern, globalized, and interconnected American economy;
- Envision the Future: increased size of container ships, full automation, faster processing, environmentally cleaner and efficient, creation of off shore ports, deep ocean cargo transfers;
- Facilitate Trade and Ensure Security: through the design and conduct of efficient logistics processes, and enhancements to secure traveler and trade programs;
- Integrate New Technology: incorporate technological advances in traveler and cargo processing, biometric screening, surveillance, non-intrusive inspection equipment, and more;
- Port Projects: current and pending projects to expand and enhance port facilities, and the creation of environmentally friendly and sustainable facilities;
- Enhance Collaboration: between government agencies and corporate entities, expand opportunities to work jointly to address new challenges;
- Increase Resilience: to natural and technological disasters, terrorist acts, and criminal activities;
- Address Connectivity: through railways, ground transportation, pipelines and future modes of transport;
- Enhance Security: recognize ports as an economic target, bring attention to emerging vulnerabilities and possible solutions; strengthen efforts to counter corruption and curb the influence of cartels and other criminal organizations;
- Promote Cybersecurity: Identify emerging cyber vulnerabilities and possible solutions to protect electronically sensitive information of American citizens and ensure the integrity of port systems and networks.
- Ensure Environmental Compliance: upgrade port infrastructure to contend with impacts of climate change, rising sea levels, and increased frequency of severe weather events and natural disasters
- Develop the workforce of the future: identify industry needs and the skills, knowledge, and abilities needed in the modern and future workforce; credentialing.
Department of Homeland Security Centers of Excellence
Who Should Attend This Conference?
Private Sector
- Chief Executive Officers (airports, seaports, passenger and cargo carriers)
- Port and Harbor Commissioners
- Airport General Manager
- Chief Operating Officer
- Chief Information Officer
- Chief Technology Officer
- Chief Commercial Officer
- Chief, Port Infrastructure Officer
- Port Director
- Director of Aviation
- Director of Port Operations
- Director, Security/ Information Technology
- Director of Security, Facilities and Regulatory Compliance
- Director, Environmental Affairs
- Port Security and Emergency Operations Officer
- Director, Environmental Affairs
- Export Executive
- Operation Executive – Freight Forwarding
- Ship Captain
- Terminal Manager
Government
- U.S. Coast Guard
- Transportation Security Administration
- Immigration and Customs Enforcement
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
- Office of Field Operations
- Chief Information Security Officer
Presented by:
The BTI Institute: A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Center of Excellence
The Homeland Security Centers of Excellence bring together leading experts and researchers to conduct multidisciplinary research and education for homeland security solutions.
The centers are sponsored by the DHS Science and Technology Directorate's (S&T) Office of University Programs (OUP) and selected through a competitive selection process. Each center is led by a university in collaboration with partners from other institutions, agencies, laboratories, think tanks, and the private sector.
The Borders, Trade, and Immigration (BTI) Institute, led by the University of Houston, conducts and transitions research, develops innovative solutions, and provides education that enhances the Nation’s ability to secure the borders, facilitate legitimate trade and travel, and ensure the integrity of the immigration system.
Through a multi-disciplinary team of national and international experts, the Institute delivers transformational technology-driven solutions, data-informed policies, workforce development opportunities for today’s Homeland Security Enterprise, and trans-disciplinary education for the next generation of homeland security experts.
In Partnership With
Since the early 1940s, the University of Houston College of Technology is one of the nation's largest and fastest growing Tier 1 technology institutions focused on advancing workforce development, research, and economic prosperity. With over 6,200 students, the college pursues applied ingenuity in practical fields from Science-Technology-Engineering-Math to degrees in innovation management, cyber security, and consumer sciences. In addition to hosting the Home Land Security Center of Excellence for BTI, the college offers accredited studies through four departments (Construction Management, Engineering Technology, Human Development and Consumer Sciences, and Information and Logistics Technology). The international student body mirrors the University of Houston which is ranked among the most ethnically diverse universities in the United States.