An Empirical Analysis for Improving Safety Management at Incheon International Passenger Terminal

The port logistics industry’s port handling business is characterized by the loading and unloading of heavy and large-sized cargoes using heavy equipment, making it prone to major accidents. In line with the recent enactment, amendment, and strengthening of the Industrial Safety and Health Act, the Port Safety Special Act, and the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Crimes, this study conducted an empirical analysis to improve safety management in the handling of car ferries at Incheon Port International Passenger Terminal. The study identified the types of safety accidents that occur during car ferry handling at Incheon Port International Passenger Terminal, which has been integrated since June 2020, and confirmed potential factors that threaten port safety, as well as the causes and backgrounds that affect them. The study analyzed the importance and achievement of factors by factor in progressing car ferry handling. Based on this, the study discussed what should be improved in the future and presented implications for the development of industrial safety management in the domestic port logistics industry. The assessment items were composed of 6 large items and 26 small items through the analysis of car ferry handling accident cases, preceding studies, and expert interviews. The study conducted an IPA survey targeting car ferry handling company executives and handling experts. As a result of the analysis, 11 factors (42.3%) were distributed in the 1st quadrant, 1 factor (3.8%) in the 2nd quadrant, 12 factors (46.1%) in the 3rd quadrant, and 2 factors (7.7%) in the 4th quadrant out of the total 26 factors, mainly concentrated in the 1st quadrant and the 3rd quadrant. The terminal users judged that factors for preventing cargo and passenger safety accidents in car ferry handling operations were the most important, and it was judged that the safety and security of accident prevention were highly evaluated as a terminal newly opened in June 2020. Existing preceding studies rarely conducted safety management-related studies based on safety accident cases occurring during car ferry handling, and the analysis results of this study have differences from other studies, and it is considered that it will contribute to the development of the port industry and the development of car ferry handling in the future.