According to a release on the initiative, Mr. Bryan Bender, CEO of Portcall.com recently conducted introductory training with BVI Port Authority staff, cargo and cruise agents to ensure the successful implementation of the program. Photo: Provided

Ms Oleanvine Pickering-Maynard replaced Akeem R. Pickering as the British Virgin Islands Ports Authority (BVIPA) Deputy Managing Director in October 2019. Photo: Team of Reproters/VINO/File

This system coordinates scheduling between the port, pilots, and agents and is an online booking system set to be operational in the first quarter of 2020.

According to a release on the initiative, Mr Bryan Bender, CEO of Portcall.com recently conducted introductory training with BVI Ports Authority staff, cargo and cruise agents to ensure the successful implementation of the program.

Scheduling Transparency 

"Mr. Bender remarked that with the launch of PortCall, the BVI Ports Authority improves scheduling transparency for the entire port community. PortCall vessel scheduling flows between the port, pilots, and agents like a hotel reservation for ships. Agents request port calls, the port books berths and pilots confirm traffic schedules," the release noted.

He said that one change is that everyone is notified all at once and that local tourism and transportation vendors gain access to live arrival/departure schedules automatically published on the web at bvi.portcall.com, eliminating out-of-date cruise schedules port-wide.

"As the most advanced cruise scheduling destination in the Caribbean, BVI becomes even more attractive to cruise line itinerary planners,” the CEO remarked. 

BVIPA will access Real-time booking - Ag. Managing Director 

According to the Ag. Managing Director of BVIPA, Ms Oleanvine Pickering-Maynard, “the new system will allow the Port’s customers direct access to a real-time booking schedule which we believe will help to augment our business transactions with both Cargo and Cruise companies.”

In October 2019, Ms Oleanvine Pickering-Maynard took the reigns of Acting Deputy Managing Director of the Ports Authority after taking over the post from former Acting Deputy, Akeem R. Pickering.