Chris Corrigan's Qube has lost a warrior of waterfront reform to retirement, delivered broader authority to two brothers with similar front-line heritage and confirmed who of its rising stars will become chief executive of Patrick's container terminals when the $9 billion dismemberment of Asciano is finally good to go.

The retiree is waterfront war veteran Don Smithwick, the Patrick brothers on the rise are Paul and John Digney and the bloke nominated to one of the hotter seats on the Australian waterfront is Michael Jovicic, who joined Qube five years ago in what now looks like a deeply strategic hiring.