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We cordially invite you to participate at the
Global Port Research Alliance - GPRA 2016
International Conference on Port Research with a special emphasis on "Decision Analytics"
May 19-20, 2016

Venue: University of Hamburg, Germany

In response to the complex challenges faced by the port sector and the related shipping and logistics industries, the Global Port Research Alliance (GPRA) has been formed among leading universities in the Americas, Asia, Australia, and Europe. The main objective of the GPRA is to establish a global research and teaching platform for port operations, shipping, and transport logistics by building collaborative arrangements among GPRA members and other interested parties, especially between GPRA and industry. GPRA 2016 aims to promote innovation-driven scholarship and education in shipping and port-related fields. It gives an excellent opportunity to academics and practitioners in the field to explore and examine the critical issues that will impact the future development of port-related research, and discuss their implications on ports and related logistics management and processes. GPRA 2016 is an excellent platform to enhance collaboration between academic researchers to generate possible solutions to address current and emerging shipping and port-related issues. It also provides opportunities for multi-stakeholder dialogue to develop creative methods to tackle unresolved challenges in port operations and management.
Call for Papers

The main topic of GPRA 2016 is "Decision Analytics"; nevertheless other port-related issues are more than welcome to be included. Shipping and trading goods internationally through various modes and nodes requires making decisions on many different levels, for instance in industrial specialization, scale economies in production and distribution, and global supply chain integration. The competitiveness of countries, industries and supply chains relies heavily on the scope and level of feasible and constructive
decision-making processes, which can be supported by decision analytics.

The GPRA 2016 conference will also provide a set of invited sessions on "Port and Logistics Network Economics" forum to address both the theoretical approaches and practical applications associated with port and logistics problems. GPRA 2016 will serve as a platform to facilitate international research and industrial collaboration to examine the multifaceted issues related to port and logistics network economics, and will develop frameworks and solutions to enhance the integration and connectivity of port and logistics systems. We invite you to submit your extended abstract(s) or full paper(s) to GPRA 2016. All submissions are expected to have a clear theoretical base and scientific analysis. Moreover, case studies are very welcome.
Program Highlights

The conference fees include a visit by bus to container terminal premises and the Conference Dinner aboard a ship on the river Elbe.
Additional dinner vouchers for accompanying people can be bought at the Conference Desk during the conference.
Important Dates

Deadline for extended abstracts or full papers: April 1, 2016
Early Bird deadline: April 1, 2016
Submission

We are accepting extended abstracts (two to four pages max.) either in free form or in LNCS format submitted as pdf, Word or LaTex file. Submissions will be single-blind peer-reviewed. The decision whether or not your abstract is accepted will be made within 14 days after submission. Selected full papers will be invited after the conference to be published in a journal by Inderscience or Springer. Please submit your extended abstract or full paper to: EasyChair: https://easychair.org/account/signin.cgi?key=34410951.VBsEWtyBtH6SI6WT.
Registration

Early:

until April 1, 2016:
Regular: €200
Phd student: €150

Late:

after April 1, 2016:
Regular: €250
Phd student: €180

BSc. or MSc. students: free admission (additional fee of €50 for the Conference Dinner). Vouchers can be bought at the Conference Desk.

Please register via RegOnline: https://www.regonline.com/register/checkin.aspx?EventId=1822076&MethodId=0&EventSessionId=&startnewreg=1
 and submit your paper/extended abstract via EasyChair: https://easychair.org/account/signin.cgi?key=34410951.VBsEWtyBtH6SI6WT