This article published in the January/February 2012 issue of World Port Development.  Paid subscribers can receive a pdf of the article in its original format including charts and pictures by sending an email to archive@worldportdevelopment.com

Character building

It is safe to say that the use of optical character recognition (OCR) is on the increase. It is becoming increasingly embedded in our daily lives but most of us are completely unaware of its various uses. Sheila Moloney reports…

The 1000th Liebherr Mobile Harbour Crane, type LPS 550 was purchased by the Belgium based company SEA-invest, which has grown into one of the world’s largest terminal operators for dry bulk, fruit and liquid bulk. Today, the group has established a worldwide reputation in the field of stevedoring, transport, warehousing and other port related activities. SEA-invest is active in no less than 25 ports spread across three continents.

Gulftainer, the largest privately owned port operator in the world based in Sharjah, announced the arrival of the "Umm Salal" at the Khorfakkan Container Terminal (KCT). The vessel docked at its facility in Khorfakkan on the evening of 11th March and stayed for 24 hours before moving on to its next destination.

Roro volumes at Associated British Ports' (ABP) Port of Ipswich look set to receive a welcome boost following the introduction of CLdN's roro freight ferry MV Severine.

The Port of Virginia handled 157,050 TEU in February, an increase of 2.2 percent when compared with totals from February 2011. Year-to-date, the port has handled 311,350 TEU vs. 312,911 TEU handled during the same period last year.

In 2011, the throughput of biofuels in the Port of Rotterdam decreased by 6% compared to 2010, to 4.3 million tonnes. 1.8 million tonnes of biodiesel (+0.2 million tonnes) and 1.7 million tonnes of ethanol (-0.3 million tonnes) were transferred.

Cargotec introduces a new rubber tyred gantry (RTG) crane, Kalmar SmartPower RTG, which minimises fuel consumption and provides an excellent balance between productivity and cost efficiency.

With the sea born totaling 88 million tons, Klaip?da Port's cargo handling growth rate in throughout the first month of this year was down by 9.3 % compared with the corresponding period of 2011.

The Port of Stockton, California, in a public-private partnership with Union Pacific Railroad and Metro Ports, added 5,825 feet of new track to the east port interchange tracks, forming a loop that will allow inbound and outbound trains to operate without interfering with operations at the its east complex.

Metro Ports, a holding of Nautilus International Holding Corp, recently announced the appointment of Troy Gouger to the position of general manager, West Gulf operations.