Prevalent at container terminals the world over, straddle carriers continue to be a source of high order levels for heavy lift manufacturers. Indeed, in an economic climate that doesn’t always bring good news, it’s heartening to hear competitors in the market talking of growth. They’ve also got plenty to report in terms of product innovations – with a particular focus on environmentally friendly enhancements. As detailed by the Cargotec-owned manufacturer Kalmar, part of the straddle carrier’s appeal is in how it can help to optimise terminal productivity by decoupling waterside and landside operations. Its speed, reach and flexibility can enable terminals to use a single type of equipment for all container operations. Shuttle carriers, in turn, are the ideal horizontal transportation system for terminals designed around automated stacking cranes or rubber-tyred gantry cranes. Another underpinning aspect of straddle carriers’ enduring success can be noted in their sheer ubiquity at container ports around the globe. This is certainly reflected in Terex Port Solutions’ observation that around 75% of its straddle and sprinter carrier sales are for replacement units, with the remaining 25% being for the expansion of fleets. While it cannot provide exact figures, it notes that 2013 sales were “aligned” to the preceding year, and if anything were up slightly by between 5 and 10%. Long-term relationships with clients provide another common theme among straddle carrier orders. This was certainly a regular characteristic in Liebherr’s order books, as it enjoyed a good year in the straddle carrier market in 2013. It also struck deals with a number of new customers as it fulfilled orders from New Zealand and across Europe, which in turn have “already led to new contracts for additional machines, which are currently under progress.” The manufacturer expects the increasing stability in European markets and higher industrial output to glean further enquiries from European ports in the short term. Liebherr notes that demand in the market is primarily from customers looking for replacement machines or to add to capacity at existing terminals. It adds, however, that some green field sites are also now coming into the market.
Conversely, Kalmar notes that it saw a slight dip in the straddle carrier market in 2013, but adds that “overall market activity is increasing.” Even with that dip, the number of contracts it has publicly reported in the last year certainly suggests a healthy order book. These include a deal to supply 11 automated straddle carriers and 17 automated stacking cranes to the terminal services provider TraPac Inc in Los Angeles, and five Kalmar Classic straddle carriers to the Port of Tacoma, Washington, scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2014.
Meanwhile, a 2013 order from Asciano’s Patrick Port Botany terminal in Sydney, Australia, saw Kalmar achieve the milestone of manufacturing its 5,000th straddle carrier unit. This deal to deliver 44 machines was one of two notable Antipodean orders that Kalmar announced last year, the other being for two diesel electric Kalmar straddle carriers to New Zealand container handling operator Port Otago. It also notched a number of notable European contracts, including deals for customers in Belgium, Spain and, most recently, a delivery of six brand new Kalmar straddle carriers to DP World Southampton in a deal worth more than £3.6 million. These machines arrived just as work finished on the new deep-sea container berth at the terminal – part of a £150 million project by Associated British Ports to prepare the Port of Southampton for the next generation of ultra large container vessels.
REMOTE CONTROL
Among Liebherr’s recent big orders is a deal to supply one of the world’s busiest terminals, ECT in the Port of Rotterdam, with seven straddle carrier units. These machines are capable of stacking one over two containers high, have a safe working load of 40 tonnes, and are supplied with a Stinis spreader. They operate in the landside interface zone of the terminal, shuttling between the automatic stacking cranes and trucks. At a massive terminal like ECT, there’s a lot to consider in terms of logistics. The Liebherr straddle carriers will handle multi trailers for intra terminal transfer for onward transport by train or barge. They’re linked to a remote positional tracking system, providing real-time accurate information on the position and handling rates of containers within the terminal. Remote connectivity is also among Kalmar’s many areas of straddle carrier innovation. All of the manufacturer’s machines can be equipped with remote connection and monitoring to enable diagnostic applications with remote problem-solving capability. It additionally places a focus on automation.
“Efficient automation solutions can bring significant gains in productivity and safety in container handling logistics,” the company tells WPD. “All the Kalmar models are future-proofed for automation and integrate seamlessly with the Kalmar SmartPort automation solutions. The automation level of new machines can be customised based on the terminal’s needs.”
ALL AROUND THE WORLD
In December, Terex announced that it had received several orders for diesel-electric straddle carriers from some of the world’s leading container terminal operators. Among these are 11 NSC 634 E straddle carriers to Belgium’s PSA Antwerp NV, with deliveries starting in March. These machines will supplement PSA’s existing fleet in its various terminals around the Port of Antwerp. They will be fitted with custom equipment, including swiveling driver seats for improved ergonomics and other technical modifications to help PSA reduce maintenance costs and to provide secure operation. This follows on from the delivery of four Terex NSC 634 E and three Terex NSC 644 E straddle carriers to another Antwerp-based customer at the end of last year. These went to the MSC Home Terminal, a joint venture between PSA and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC). These vehicles will be customised with complete hardware and software for seamless integration into the existing operational infrastructure. This includes camera systems for exact positioning under the ship-to-shore cranes and interface modules for wireless operating data acquisition and remote servicing. The Terex NSC 644 E straddle carrier can stack one over three containers and reaches a speed of 24 kph, while the Terex NSC 634 E straddle carrier can stack one over two containers and has a maximum speed of 30 kph.
Further afield, Terex’s ongoing relationship with Transnet Port Terminals (TPT), a division of the state-owned South African logistics group Transnet SOC Ltd, gleaned an order for 22 NSC 644 E models. TPT operates terminals in seven South African ports, including Durban, where 28 Terex straddle carriers have operated since 2012. Terex is now supplying 18 new machines for Durban, 13 of which were delivered late last year, with the remaining five set to arrive in April 2014. To complete the order package of 22 machines, Terex is delivering the final four units for the container terminal in Capetown. In another contract from 2013, Terex announced last May that it had received an order for 10 NSC 634 E ECO hybrid straddle carriers from the Bahamas’ Freeport Container Port (FCP), part of Hutchison Port Holdings, with an option to purchase an additional 12 machines. Prior to the order, there were already 25 diesel-hydraulic Terex NSC 644 H straddle carriers in use at FCP. The new machines stack 9’6” high-cube containers one over two and, to enable high handling rates, have lifting capacities of up to 60 tonnes under the spreader coupled with maximum travel speeds of 30 kph. The manufacturer boasts that an “outstanding feature” of the Terex NSC E ECO model is its hybrid drive system, with its combination of diesel-powered generator and electrostatic short-term storage media offering significantly re
duced fuel consumption and exhaust emissions compared to a traditional drive system.
ECO EVOLUTION
As previously stated, environmental concerns are at the heart of many of the market’s current innovations. To this end, Kalmar announced last October that it was introducing what it called “the world’s first real hybrid straddle and shuttle carriers” to the market. The manufacturer boasts that these ecologically enhanced machines consume 40% less fuel than existing machinery. Kalmar also states that its hybrid models provide the best fuel efficiency on the market and meet the tightest engine emission regulations, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by more than 50 tonnes a year compared to traditional diesel-electric machines. The hybrid straddle and shuttle carriers operate with a regenerative energy system that converts electrical braking and spreader lowering energy into electric power that is stored through “state-of-the-art” battery technology. Its automated ‘start-stop system’ creates a balance between engine and battery power to extend engine and generator lifetimes and minimise the regularity of maintenance checks. Terex states that its straddle and sprinter carriers are powered by fuel-efficient diesel engines that always comply with the latest emission regulations. They are available with two different drive types – diesel-hydraulic and diesel-electric. Among the numerous environemntally friendly options and configurations the manufacturer offers is the ECOCap system. This energy-saving technology uses supercapacitators to store and recycle the energy from braking and lowering, using this to power hoisting moves.
SUPPLY AND DEMAND
Emissions regulations are often the driving force behind ecological innovations. But such enhancements are also often spurred on by direct feedback from the terminal operators themselves. Liebherr lists fuel efficiency, tyre life, safety, productivity and reliability as being among the core values that straddle carrier customers look out for. But the manufacturer notes that its ongoing enhancements to its machines’ environmental credentials must be delivered in tandem with improved productivity and reliability. So the variable drive system on its straddle carriers is designed to be both efficient and ecological. It has, however, so far avoided the use of capacitators on its straddle carriers, stating that particular approach has “not proven cost-effective to date” and is “yet to be proven on the marketplace.” Liebherr machines do, however, utilise energy regeneration between the hoist and travel drives. In addition to the launch of its new hybrid carriers, Kalmar states that it has delivered a range of new features over the entirety of its straddle and shuttle carriers in response to customer needs. “In designing our next generation machines, we have been guided by the port and terminal industry’s requirement for low total cost of ownership, environmental sustainability, excellent usability and ergonomics, safety, productivity and automation,” says Dr Tero Kokko, Kalmar’s Vice President, Horizontal Transportation. “We think that the new Kalmar hybrid straddle and shuttle carriers are a true leap forward in terminal yard equipment, and are confident that they will offer significant customer benefits throughout the equipment lifetime.”
COMFORTING CHANGES
Another driving force in changing straddle and shuttle carrier technology is frequently, and quite literally, the driver. A comfortable, happy person at the controls means optimal productivity. So Kalmar has introduced a number of ergonomic enhancements, based on customer feedback. The redesigned cabin on its latest machines features a more spacious interior as well as new window geometry to reduce night-time reflections. And in addition to an intuitive user interface, the cabin has more ergonomic seating, reduced noise levels and excellent visibility in all directions. Kalmar has also been working on ways to deliver operational efficacy in harmony with safety. The new automatic stability control on its machines ensures smooth and safe driving by continuously monitoring speed, turn radius and the spreader’s position, slowing the vehicle automatically when needed. The manufacturer states that this makes the machine safer to operate without decreasing performance. The company adds that the new wheel set-up on its machines means they can manoeuvre with greatly increased precision and speed. Each wheel can be individually controlled and there are four different steering modes according to the operating situation. Kalmar states that this creates a “radical increase” in agility, enables shorter work cycles, and reduces terminal congestion.