A challenge in port planning and design Towards an Area Planning Studio for the Port of Rotterdam

In order to plan and design the Rotterdam port industrial complex, professional area planning is required. Basically, area planning can be defined as the process of balancing the mutual relations between spatial planning, business development and environmental constraints and opportunities. In other words area planning deals with conflicting interests of long term development and short term gains. For years the Port of Rotterdam (PoR) experiences increased environmental turbulence, which is characterized by an increase in dynamics, complexity and unpredictability. Because of this turbulence the PoR is facing a continuous challenge to manage the balance of these mutual relations. As a result area planning has becom