DConneD Transport Openuions and Reuarch Manager Port of Melbourne Authority D I Ross Port Statistician Port of Melbourne Authority It is generally accepted that for Australia to be competitive on world markets it must become more productive. As a trading nation it is dependent on a reliable transportation system in which container terminals are a vitalHnk for the shipment of goods and commodities. The waterfront in particular· has been criticised for disadvantaging local exporters because of inefficiencies, an accusation that is all the more significant because of the large percentage of cargo that is carried by sea In order to find ways of increasing port productivity it is essential that it can be suitably measured. This paper is the study of an attempt to develop a production function for a container terminal in the Port of Melbourne as an alternative performance indicator to partial factor productivity measurement Contact author: Rudy Reker Port of Melbourne Authority World Trade Centre Melbourne Vie 3005 Telephone: (03) 611 1895 Fax: (03) 629 8121