Also present were Mahamed Meer Abdelrehman Al-Sarrah, Director of Seaports and Customs, Saud Salim Al Mazrouei, Director of Hamriyah Free Zone Authority and Sharjah Airport International Free Zone, Lars Seistrup, Managing Director of Damen Shipyards Sharjah. The ASD 2411 Tug is fully ‘built in Sharjah for Sharjah’.

The Sharjah Port and Customs Authority is a long-term customer of Damen and already has eight Damen Stan Tugs and a recently delivered Damen pilot boat in its fleet. The new Damen ASD 2411 is the port’s first ASD tug.

Following the ceremony, Sheikh Khaled bin Abdullah bin Sultan Al Qasimi toured and inspected the Al Luolo’ Aya. Having seen the vessel he said: “I am impressed by the quality and outfitting of all the A-brand materials on board.”

The tug was built at Damen Shipyards Sharjah, which is located in the Hamriyah Free Zone and is one of three ports owned and operated by Sharjah Ports Authority. At the same facility, Damen is also constructing a series of ASD Tugs 2411 and 2810, both on speculation and on contract.

With a 68.5 tonnes bollard pull ahead, the Damen ASD Tug 2411 will be deployed at Port Khor Fakkan in the United Arab Emirates. The vessel is fully equipped with FiFi 1 and water spraying notation.

Khor Fakkan is one of the leading container transhipment ports. It is strategically located on Sharjah’s Indian Ocean coast, just outside the Straits of Hormuz and close to the main east-west shipping routes. Khor Fakkan’s location makes it an obvious choice for shipping lines with large  transhipment volumes and which also require easy access to the UAE hinterland. Recently, a major expansion of the port has been completed and the new tug will allow the port to handle even larger container vessels.

Pascal Slingerland, Damen Sales Manager Middle East, commented: “The ASD Tugs are highly manoeuverable and powerful and ideally suited to operations in Khor Fakkan. We are extremely proud to have built this vessel ‘in Sharjah and for Sharjah’ according to the world’s highest shipbuilding standards. We have built some 70 Damen ASD Tugs 2411 over the years and a large number of these vessels are operating very successfully here in the UAE.”

With hundreds of Damen vessels operating in this region, it is a huge advantage that the Damen Shipyards Group has a large shipbuilding and repair facility in the United Arab Emirates. With onsite warranty and service engineers and modern newbuild and drydock facilities, Damen can provide the best service throughout the lifetime of the vessel.

“After rigorous on site testing of various brands of terminal tractors, C3 Ltd’s equipment specialists team selected Capacity Sabre 9 machines to efficiently cope with the demands of log pulling,” says Ross Easton, director, TLL Equipment. “These new robust terminal tractors, which can be customised for every specific handling task they need to perform, enhance a wide range of container handling equipment previously supplied to C3 Ltd by TLL Equipment.

“Although C3 Ltd has its own maintenance team and workshop facilities, TLL Equipment’s support encompasses a technical advisory and original spare parts service.”

Capacity Sabre 9 modular terminal tractors, with a robust frame construction and precise manufacturing tolerances, are ideally suited to handle rigorous logging operations. This series has been designed with a 30% faster actuation of the boom than previous models. The advantage of this is reduced coupling times which enables quicker drive-aways. A lower, tapered skid ramp minimises trip outs of the cab and for increased operator safety, there is a lower step height and new sight line designs for improved visibility.

Other features include reduced emissions for enhanced environmental protection and the latest technology in fuel savings, which significantly decreases operational and maintenance costs. Components are easily accessible for efficient ground level serviceability.

The synchronised seat and cab suspension tuning for smooth operation, an efficient HVAC airflow and a newly designed dashboard with elevated instrumentation, reduce driver fatigue and optimise productivity.

Built-in onboard diagnostics enable operators to easily monitor the machine’s service status. Numerous service checks can be performed at ground level, which ensures more uptime for each machine.

Big Lift Trucks and TLL Equipment work closely with every customer to ensure all equipment meets exact performance and safety requirements.

Photo caption
TLL Equipment – in conjunction with materials handling specialists, Big Lift Trucks – has recently supplied 10 terminal tractors to C3 Ltd’s port facilities in New Zealand.

These cranes are probably bethe most silent and eco-efficient STS cranes in the world. In addition, they have been painted with a specially designed color scheme so that they blend in with the surrounding seashore and landscape. The parties involved have agreed not to disclose the value of the order.

The Oslo Sjursoya container terminal is located close to densely populated areas in Oslo. The terminal takes its environmental responsibility very seriously, especially its noise emissions and carbon dioxide footprint. Extremely stringent noise and CO2 emissions limits were set for the new STS cranes.

“Hand-over is complete and these STS cranes are on track to be the most silent and eco-efficient cranes of this type in the world. Time will tell, but I’m confident it will prove to be so,” said Juha Aatola, Konecranes General Manager, STS Cranes. “It has been a pleasure to work with the Port of Oslo on this very special project.”

The cranes are equipped with LED lights for improved eco-efficiency. They have twin-lift operation for maximum handling capacity, a lifting capacity of 64 tons, and an outreach of 40 meters.