News APB | Ports de Balears

Sonrisa Médica presents “Red Nose Day” at the Port of Palma

04/06/2014

Today, Sonrisa Médica presented its programme for the “Red Nose Day” festival at the Port of Palma, which it has organised to mark the 20th anniversary of this pioneering non-profit association, whose objective is to transform hospital environments through comedy. According to Sonrisa Médica’s Director of Events, Projects, and Awareness, Fanny Guerrero, the “Red Nose Day” is a way of thanking the people of the Balearic Islands for their support over the last 20 years. To this end, Sonrisa Médica has organised a series of activities, workshops, and musical performances for the entire family from 10.00-20.00 on Sunday 8th June, in the main car park on the Camino de la Escollera, at the Port of Palma. Entry is a five-euro donation for adults, which will be spent entirely on funding Sonrisa Médica. The APB Chairman, Alberto Pons, praised the magnificent work that Sonrisa Médica does with patients in Majorca’s hospitals, and declared that he is delighted to help out by letting the organisation use this area at the Port of Palma to hold the first “Red Nose Day”. Pons also added that he hoped “that after this first festival, there will be many more to come until it becomes a firm fixture on the calendar”. The presentation was attended by Antonio Carmona, from the Palma City Council, Inma de Benito, from the Majorca Hotel Federation, and Simone Luca, from Grupo Juaneda, all of whom work with Sonrisa Médica, and by Aspirino the Clown, who invited everybody to come along to the “Red Nose Day” on Sunday.

PR Director, Ricardo Recio, is awarded the Police White Ribbon Medal of Merit by the Palma City Police Force

30/05/2014

The Palma City Police Force and the Palma City Council have awarded the Police White Ribbon Medal of Merit to the APB Public Relations Director, Ricardo Recio, in recognition of his work with these two organisations. Recio was presented with the award during the City Police Force Festival, held this afternoon at the Son Moix Sports Centre in Palma. Ricardo Recio thanked the police force for the award which he dedicated to all the APB employees at the Port of Palma. Recio thanked his colleagues at “the Police Station, and the Conservation, Public Port Land, and Drafting Departments, the Management, the Chairman’s Office, the Registry, and all those who have worked with me in one way or another over all these years”.

HR Director, Juan Ginard, retires after 50 years at the APB

30/05/2014

Today, the APB paid tribute to Juan Ginard Garcías, the APB’s Human Resource Director, to mark his retirement after 50 years’ service. The APB Chairman, Alberto Pons, led the tribute and thanked Ginard for his dedication to what he insisted is “the most difficult job of all”. Juan Ginard, in turn, thanked “everybody with whom I have shared more than just work over all these years”. According to Ginard, “the time has come for me to do other things, and have some time for me and my family”. He wished all of the APB employees the best of luck and signed off “not with a goodbye but with a farewell”.

The APB presents the Port Innovation Platform for public ports

29/05/2014

Last night, at an event held at Passenger Terminal No.4, at the Port of Palma, and organised as part of the Maremostra International Film Festival, the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) presented a project for the creation of a port innovation platform for public ports in the Balearic Islands. The presentation was given by the Head of the APB’s Quality and Innovation Department, Jorge Martín, who pointed out that this platform “will serve to boost the Smart Port management concept in the port community”. According to Martín, “ports are no longer seen as mere infrastructures. Instead they are perceived as profitable, efficient, competitive business clusters that offer added-value services to their customers. This is why the APB is leading the design and development of a port innovation platform that responds to the new challenges of the 21st century. The concept that best transmits the aim of this platform is Smart Port, as it includes the latest innovative developments, enabling the provision of efficient public services, the use of technology to interact with the general public who, ultimately, are the users of the port infrastructures, and the permanent search for optimum integration between the port and the city. This project, which the APB has been developing since the start of 2014, should be finished in the next few months, and should act as a tool for promoting innovative ideas for the improvement of services provided to direct users of ports, and to the general public, who are indirect users of many of the port´s existing facilities and infrastructures.

The APB releases an information video on the Port of Maó dredging project

29/05/2014

The Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) has released an information video on the Port of Maó dredging project in order to show the precautions that have been taken throughout the project, which is now in its final stages. The APB Chairman, Alberto Pons, stated today that he is “quite satisfied” with the dredging work so far, which in his opinion, has been carried out “more than adequately”. For Alberto Pons, it is important to transmit to Minorcan residents and to tourists that visit the island, or intend to do so this summer, that “we can guarantee that the natural and environmental conditions of the port and its surroundings remain unchanged”. Dredging work at the Port of Maó is due for completion in a few weeks, thus complying with the objective of avoiding the high season and, according to Pons, “ensuring port operations for many years to come”. Safe dredging The corporate video made by the APB in conjunction with the television production company, La Rulot, highlights the environmental precautions taken throughout the dredging process at the Port of Maó, and emphasises the modifications made and improvements added to the project including the commitment not to dredge any further than was strictly necessary to ensure port operations could be carried out correctly, covering the dredged material containing the highest heavy metal content with mud, at the bottom of the sea, and treating part of the dredged material on land. The corporate video is available on the web page created especially for monitoring dredging at the Port of Maó at www.portsdebalears.com.

The APB discusses its Master Plan proposal for the Port of Palma with the PSIB-PSOE

22/05/2014

The Chairman of the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB), Alberto Pons, and the Director of the state-owned body that manages public ports in the Balearic Islands, Juan Carlos Plaza, today met with representatives of the Balearic Islands Socialist Party (PSIB-PSOE), Jaume Carbonero and Mercedes Garrido, at the APB headquarters, to talk them through the main points of the proposed Infrastructure and Master Plan for the Port of Palma. Both the APB Chairman and its Director are conducting a series of meetings with representatives from government, the media, political parties, professional associations, environmental organisations, and other groups to discuss the proposal and invite stakeholders to contribute to the plan drawn up by the APB, in order to obtain the maximum consensus before it is moved onto the next stage. For further information about the Infrastructure and Master Plan proposal, go to www.portsdebalears.com.

The APB renews its cooperation agreement with the Majorca Island Council for handling emergencies at the Port of Alcudia

21/05/2014

The Port Authorty of the Balearic Islands (APB) and the Majorca Island Council have today renewed their cooperation agreement on occupational health and safety, firefighting, sea rescue, and civil defence at the Port of Alcudia. As a result, the agreement signed in 2002 has been extended for a further 15 years and aims to increase safety levels at the Port of Alcudia, both on land and in the water. The agreement was signed today by the APB Chairman, Alberto Pons, and the President of the Island Council, María Salom, at the Majorca Island Council headquarters in Palma, in the presence of the Local Cooperation Councillor, Bernadí Coll. Under this agreement, the APB will invest €70,000 per year in classroom and hands-on training in port activities for the Majorca Fire Brigade. The training will cover dealing with on-board emergencies, combating pollution, and handling dangerous goods. The APB Chairman, Alberto Pons, stressed that an agreement between the two institutions is the most “intelligent” way of complying with safety requirements in public ports. In turn, the Majorca Island Council undertakes to provide the necessary staff and equipment to ensure safety at the Port of Alcudia at all times, and to assign a specially-trained response team to the port area. The President of the Council, María Salom, pointed out that this was the largest investment ever in training which aims to “ensure that the fire brigade operates efficiently and successfully”.

The Deputy Director of Customs and Special Taxes opens the 12th Customs Forum at the Port of Palma

19/05/2014

On 16th and 17th May, the Port of Palma hosted the 12th Customs Forum, which was opened by Marisa González, the Deputy Director of the Department of Customs and Special Taxes, which is part of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness. The meeting was held at the headquarters of the Association of Maritime Activities Employers (APEAM) in the Balearic Islands, and was attended by the Chairman of the Customs Agents Council, José Miguel Soldevilla, and the APEAM Chairman, Miguel Puigserver. The Forum’s closing address, on Saturday, was given by the Director-General of the Balearic Islands’ Ports and Airports, Antonio Deudero. During this two-day event, which was held in collaboration with the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands, Grupo Taric, and the Customs Agents Association, over 100 customs representatives discussed the future of their profession. According to Soldevilla, the Forum “will serve to lay down the guidelines for our profession over the next few years”. As announced by the Chairman of the World Customs Association at the 2nd Global AEO (Authorised Economic Operators) Conference, held recently in Madrid, the EU and China will be signing a mutual recognition agreement in the next few months. This agreement will smooth the way for any small companies that apply AEO criteria. Customs agents obtaining the AEO certificate will reap multiple benefits, which will result in faster processes and greater legal protection in the EU and countries that have signed agreements of this type (United States, Japan, Switzerland, Norway, and Andorra).

Balearic Islands Freight Forwarding Association (ATEIA-OLTRA) set up today at the Port of Palma

15/05/2014

The Balearic Islands Freight Forwarding Association (ATEIA-OLTRA) was set up at the Port of Palma today, following a technical conference entitled “The responsibility of freight forwarders and other logistics operators”. The event was attended by the Chairman of the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands, Alberto Pons, the Chairman of the Majorca Chamber of Commerce, José Luis Roses, and the Chairman of FETEIA-OLTRA, Enric Ticó. The new Balearic Islands Freight Forwarding Association is made up of the seven main freight-forwarding companies on the islands, and Enrique Oliver Payarols, of Transcoma Baleares, S.A. has been named as its Chairman. As of today, the Chairman of the association (ATEIA-OLTRA) will be on the federation’s executive committee, thus making the Balearic Islands a full member of the Spanish Freight Forwarding Federation. The new association aims to publicise the role of freight forwarders as a key element in the smooth running of the logistics chain, and to pay special attention to providing training and information for its members. The role of freight forwarders Freight forwarders are global logistics operators. They handle 87% of Spanish foreign trade and decide through which port, airport, or customs border each foreign trade shipment will go, within the framework of an integrated logistics chain. Freight forwarders coordinate, monitor, and direct all of the operations needed to ship international goods, as well as all related freight services, regardless of the mode of transport. Freight forwarders organise the logistics chain. In short, freight forwarders are the architects of the supply chain. They are to freight what travel agents are to passengers. These days, managing foreign trade is complex, and it involves extraordinary economic, legal, and organisational risks. A large part of these risks are taken by freight-forwarding companies who, thanks to the responsible way in which they handle their operations, ensure that company objectives are met, i.e. enabling efficient, safe international trade.

The President of the Balearic Islands Regional Government, José Ramón Bauzá, opens the 31st Palma Boat Show

30/04/2014

Today, the President of the Balearic Islands Regional Government, José Ramón Bauzá, opened the 31st Palma Boat Show, which is to be held from 30th April to 4th May at the Port of Palma. José Ramon Bauzá, together with the Mayor of Palma, Mateo Isern, presided over the official opening ceremony of the International Boat Show, alongside other authorities. They both highlighted the importance of the boating industry as a driving force for the islands’ economy, and the Palma Boat Show’s value in positioning the Balearic Islands as a world sailing and yachting industry benchmark. The APB Chairman, Alberto Pons, took advantage of the visit of the President and Mayor of Palma to the International Boat Show to show them the new urban area of the port which is open to the public at the Moll Vell marina. This building has a large open-air area on the top which provides unique views of the Port of Palma.

The Port Authority of the Balearic Islands installs free public toilets at the Port of Palma

23/04/2014

The Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB) has installed free public toilets at the Port of Palma to cater for the needs of citizens and cruise passengers. These toilets have universal accessibility and are made of highly resistant materials. They are located on the Camino de La Escollera, and have a self-cleaning system which is activated each time they are used. In addition, their opening times can be set to coincide with the presence of cruise passengers in the area. The cost of this facility was around €5,000 and was paid for by the APB as part of its cruise passenger improvements at the Port of Palma.

The Saga Pearl II starts the cruise season at the Port of Alcudia.

23/04/2014

This morning, the Chairman of the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB), Alberto Pons, presented a commemorative plaque to Wesley Dunlop, the captain of the Saga Pearl II cruise ship to mark the vessel’s first call at the Port of Alcudia. The presentation took place on board the ship in a simple ceremony which was also attended by the Mayor of Alcudia, Coloma Terrasa, and the Tourism Councillor, Magdalena Truyols, who also marked the Saga Pearl II´s first visit to the port with several gifts. The ship, which has nearly 400 passengers on board, is the first cruise vessel to visit the Port of Alcudia in 2014. The itinerary of the 164 metre-long Saga Pearl II is unknown to the ship’s passengers, who find out where they are when they wake up each morning. The main attractions for passengers on this call included a stroll along the beach, a walk around the town’s old quarter, and a visit to the former Roman city of Pollentia.