Modeling and simulating processes in optimizing port activities – literature review

The international economic and social context, due to the COVID-19 crisis, has highlighted the resilience of international maritime trade and global supply chains. For these reasons, port activities have constantly adapted to the new challenges. The specialized literature in this field argues for the importance of modeling and simulation in the process of optimizing port activities. This direction of research facilitates the adaptation of port activity to the requirements of the maritime market, to competition in the field and last but not least to technological progress. Modeling and simulation in the field of port activity has become the tool through which new investment projects can be analyzed, such as a specialized terminal. Modeling and simulation can also contribute to the identification of technical or procedural optimal solutions both from the perspective of implementation costs and depending on the actual situation in the hinterland area. As part of a larger research, the paper is a literature review article. This paper proposes an assessment of the state of research in the field of modeling and simulation of processes in specialized port terminals in order to identify research directions that would increase the efficiency of the activities carried out.