Mexico Natie recently confirmed an order of another eight lift trucks, due for delivery in April 2017. This will bring their fleet of Konecranes lift trucks to twenty machines.

The new machines will increase Mexico Natie’s handling capacity at three different terminals in the Port of Antwerp, Europe’s second-largest seaport: Port 740, 5th harbour dock, and Blue Star terminal. The machines will handle all kinds of cargo, from containers to steel coils, crates and various other break bulk goods, including stuffing and stripping in and out of containers.

Mexico Natie’s lift truck order includes both long and short wheel-based lift truck models. Machines with a short wheelbase are ideal for tight spaces such as warehouses and narrow quays, as they have exceptional manoeuvrability. Marc Ivens, CEO of Mexico Natie, explains, “We have 160 000 m2 in warehousing space and rely on Konecranes short wheelbase lift trucks to handle cargo quickly, safely and efficiently. We remain impressed with the machines’ powerful design and performance – in our opinion Konecranes lift trucks are the very best machines on the market.”

The order for two reach stackers and six forklifts, also includes a SMV 17-1200 C which is a 17 ton capacity forklift with Konecranes’ state-of-the-art box type chassis, a special heavy-duty lift mast and a reinforced carriage. Konecranes will customize all the new lift trucks with multiple extra LED lights to enable safer night-time operations. All forklifts also come with a customized quick-release system, allowing Mexico Natie to use its existing attachments and change between them easily.

Heavy Handling is the Konecranes distributor in Belgium, and they have continued to impress Mexico Natie with their dedicated after-market service. Pieter Sanczuk, responsible for Konecranes sales at Heavy Handling concludes, “We have a strong and long-lasting relationship with Mexico Natie, built around our service and after sales reliability. We appreciate the trust they have put in us, and look forward to making another significant lift truck delivery in Belgium.”

Construction of the new 23-metre long Shoalbuster took place at Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld, in the Netherlands. During the handover ceremony on 17 March, the vessel was officially named Graham Robertson.

Maintenance dredging
The Bristol Port Company will mobilise the Graham Robertson in a variety of functions. To this end, the adaptable design of the Shoalbuster 2308S allowed the yard to install numerous extra equipment.

Addressing the primary role of plough dredging activities, the Graham Robertson has an aft-mounted A-frame. “Being able to plough dredge will also ensure the maximum available depth of water can be maintained within the dock,” says Bristol Port Company Deputy Haven Master Christopher Jones.

Economic benefits
The vessel will also undertake buoy maintenance and installation and repair works, he continues: “For this her hydraulic deck crane will prove invaluable.”

To further enhance the versatile nature of the Graham Robertson, the contract also called for a dismountable pilotage platform to allow for occasional piloting tasks, firefighting equipment and a towing hook.

“A truly multipurpose port craft was a strict requirement when finalising the vessel’s specification,” adds Mr Jones. “Introducing such a multipurpose vessel will allow the port to greatly increase the level of work it can undertake in-house, leading to financial savings.”

A valuable asset
Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld delivered the vessel just 15 weeks after contract signing. “It is an honour to work with the Bristol Port Company for the first time – delivering this compact, multifunctional vessel within a tight time frame,” states Arjen van Elk, Damen UK Sales Manager. “We look forward to seeing the Graham Robertson prove itself as a valuable asset in the Bristol Port Company’s ambitions for growth and development.”
Bristol Port takes delivery of Damen Multi-role Shoalbuster

The Bristol Port Company has taken delivery of a Damen Shoalbuster 2308S. Modified with several customised options, the vessel will be able to take on a multi-functional role that includes plough dredging, towing, pilotage and survey duties. This is the first contract between Damen and the Bristol Port Company.

Construction of the new 23-metre long Shoalbuster took place at Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld, in the Netherlands. During the handover ceremony on 17 March, the vessel was officially named Graham Robertson.

Maintenance dredging
The Bristol Port Company will mobilise the Graham Robertson in a variety of functions. To this end, the adaptable design of the Shoalbuster 2308S allowed the yard to install numerous extra equipment.

Addressing the primary role of plough dredging activities, the Graham Robertson has an aft-mounted A-frame. “Being able to plough dredge will also ensure the maximum available depth of water can be maintained within the dock,” says Bristol Port Company Deputy Haven Master Christopher Jones.

Economic benefits
The vessel will also undertake buoy maintenance and installation and repair works, he continues: “For this her hydraulic deck crane will prove invaluable.”

To further enhance the versatile nature of the Graham Robertson, the contract also called for a dismountable pilotage platform to allow for occasional piloting tasks, firefighting equipment and a towing hook.

“A truly multipurpose port craft was a strict requirement when finalising the vessel’s specification,” adds Mr Jones. “Introducing such a multipurpose vessel will allow the port to greatly increase the level of work it can undertake in-house, leading to financial savings.”

A valuable asset
Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld delivered the vessel just 15 weeks after contract signing. “It is an honour to work with the Bristol Port Company for the first time – delivering this compact, multifunctional vessel within a tight time frame,” states Arjen van Elk, Damen UK Sales Manager. “We look forward to seeing the Graham Robertson prove itself as a valuable asset in the Bristol Port Company’s ambitions for growth and development.”

Owned by Peel Ports, Greenock Ocean Terminal – recognised across the world for its role in exporting goods including Scotch whisky and Scottish food stuffs – has projected that it will handle 200,000 TEU (twenty foot equivalent units) containers a year by 2021, representing a 100 percent increase on today’s 100,000 units.

Andrew Hemphill, Port Director, Peel Ports’ Clydeport explains: “The opening of Liverpool2 has transformed the playing field for us, bringing deep-sea connections much closer to Scotland and we are now in a unique position thanks to our Irish Sea Hubs. Mega ocean container ships can now call directly into Liverpool, which acts as a feeder hub to us in Greenock, Ireland and Manchester, allowing closer import and export routes to market.

“It is a more commercially viable, sustainable way to move goods around by sea. Our connections will take traffic off of Britain’s already busy motorways and offer a cheaper more environmentally friendly method of transportation.

“Once news spreads about our new capabilities I expect shipping lines will see our Irish Sea Hub as an attractive alternative to the status quo.”

The destinations of the containers that already come through the port vary, with many making their way to various whisky bonds along the Scottish West Coast to be loaded and brought back to Greenock for shipment to the Americas.

Located on the Firth of Clyde, Greenock Ocean Terminal has been at the heart of Scotland’s shipping industry since 1876, with the container terminal officially opening in 1969. The 50 acre facility has evolved over time and recently invested £1.6million in straddle carrier to improve operations for its global customer base, with further investment planned.

Andrew recently recruited a new sales manager who will spearhead Clydeport’s sales strategy as the business embarks on meeting its five year growth targets.

Gillian Johnson officially joined the company in January 2017, bringing with her 25 years’ industry experience. Also the current chair of the Glasgow Freight Club, Gillian plans to challenge historic assumptions and encourage customers to take a good look at their existing supply chains to uncover time and cost savings.

Future plans include extending the quayside by 150 metres to support larger vessels coming into Greenock. The site is also home to three iconic cranes that have become a key focal point in the Firth of Clyde’s skyline which have the ability to lift loads of up to 40 tonnes and outreach across 13 containers.

Another of the Port’s key selling points for cargo owners is that it has 25,000m2 of modern multi-user warehousing and up to 80 reefer (refrigerated container) points.
Many of the Port’s customers use the facility to store imported and exported commodities as well as goods that have been unstuffed, in preparation for onward distribution.

Andrew adds: “All of these key investments give us the confidence to project such a bright future for Scotland’s export capabilities. It’s a very exciting time for us.”

On 19 June 2007, The State of Qatar began the development of NPP, one of the world’s largest greenfield port developments. The QAR 27 Billion (USD 7.4 Billion) megaproject will span a 26.8 square kilometre area and is strategically located south of Doha. NPP includes a new port (Hamad Port), a new base for the Qatar Emiri Naval Forces and the Qatar Economic Zone 3. The brand new multi-use port began partial operations at the end of 2015 and is now in full operation after the opening of Container Terminal 1 in December 2016, providing a throughput capacity of two million TEUs per year.

“This delivery represents the culmination of the successful collaboration between the New Port Project and Kalmar. The new Kalmar fleet will play an important role in helping us to reach our cargo-handling goals at Hamad Port, and Kalmar’s expert training will help ensure the best use of their reliable equipment” says Nabil Al-Khaldi, Director, Engineering, Qatar Ports Management Company MWANI.

“We are pleased that NPP chose an extensive fleet of Kalmar equipment to Hamad Port. Our Agent Rumaillah Motors, part of Rumaillah Group has been at the forefront of providing full support to NPP for Kalmar port handling solutions in the region”, says Jinesh Manian, Sales Manager, Kalmar Middle East.

The order includes twenty-one forklifts comprising Kalmar DCG100-12, Kalmar DCG120-12, Kalmar DCG150-12, Kalmar DCF250-12LB, Kalmar DCF300-12LB, Kalmar DCE280RoRo, Kalmar DCE330RoRo and Kalmar DCF450-12 units. Also included are five Kalmar DCF100-45E7 empty container handlers and four Kalmar DRG450-60S5 reachstackers.