In 2011 the largest of these orders have been for automated operations in Khalifa in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (34 all-electrics) and Terminal Catalunya in Spain (40 all-electrics). Most recently, Bromma has won orders for a total of 12 all-electrics for service in semi-automated operations in Brisbane and Sydney, Australia.
In addition to the above, Bromma all-electrics are also in service today in automated terminals in Virginia in the United States; in Hamburg, Germany; in Algeciras, Spain; in three automated terminals in Korea; and in Ningbo, China. Bromma anticipates further automated spreader orders later in 2011. What these operations tend to have in common is that they are high-throughput operations. As such, the move to automation in container handling represents one of the most significant new trends in the industry.
“An automated terminal is the last place you want to experiment with an unproven spreader,” notes Vikram Raman, Bromma’s Commercial Director. “A spreader breakdown is the last thing you want in an automated operation and this is an important reason why Bromma is doing so well with these projects. Big companies want reliable partners. Over the past decade Bromma has sold nearly 2,000 all-electric crane spreaders, so no one can match Bromma in experience or proven all-electric reliability. Bromma has the advantage of a decade of experience and improvement. Plus, we understand the operational issues in the ASC environment, since we have worked in so many of these projects.”