Peel Ports has been working closely with ABB, a global leader in automation, to produce a customised, high-tech training simulator tailored to interactively test the abilities and skills of drivers by presenting them with realistic, operating scenarios. The Company has invested over £500,000 in developing the simulator and the associated software.

The crane simulator reproduces the equipment layouts and behavioural movements of the actual Ship-To-Shore (STS) and semi-automated Cantilever Rail Mounted Gantry cranes (CRMG) which have been manufactured by Zhenhua Port Machinery Company (ZPMC) and are the tallest cranes built by the Chinese manufacturer to date.

The custom-designed software package on the simulator incorporates highly visual, real-life landscape graphics depicting the Liverpool skyline, including the iconic Liver Building and the river Mersey.

Khalid Mahdy, Training Officer at Liverpool2, said “Our crane operators will receive unrivalled training opportunities in how to manoeuvre and control these giant pieces of equipment and become familiar with the controls well before they are actually installed.

“They will also be able to practice problem-solving in a safe and controlled environment, as scenarios cover incidents, equipment failures and extreme weather conditions. At Peel Ports, we are committed to a comprehensive health and safety programme which ensures our employees are able to develop their skillsets to the highest level of expertise.”

David Huck, Port Director, added: “Peel Ports are committed to providing the best facilities and opportunities available in the training of our employees and workforce partners. We fully recognise the importance of a highly-skilled and competent workforce to the continued success and growth of the business.

“We are continuing to make significant investments in the latest phase of infrastructure during 2015, including the Navis N4 Terminal Operating System (TOS) and 10-lane AutoGates. Our investment in advanced  driver simulators will further benefit our customers through improvements to operational efficiency as we reach the next phase of construction for Liverpool2 These investments will make Liverpool2 one of the most operationally efficient and modern terminals in Europe.”

The fleet of STS and CRMG cranes are part of the £300 million investment programme by Peel Ports to expand and develop the existing Port of Liverpool which will see Liverpool2, as it is called, become the UK’s largest transatlantic deep-sea port and container terminal.

Once completed in late 2015, it will be able to accommodate most of the world’s current fleet of container vessel types and will offer shipping lines a unique opportunity to connect ships of up to 13,500 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) directly to the heart of the UK.

The cranes will be capable of handling two 380m vessels simultaneously and ultimately will have a capacity of over one million TEU. With semi-automated remote-controlled operation, the cranes will reduce the time taken to transfer containers from ship to road or rail. They will also have the ability to operate at speeds in excess of 30mph and wind speeds of up to 55mph (88kmph).

Reefer Terminal, the largest refrigerated terminal in the Mediterranean for more than thirty years handling 600,000 pallets per year, is also a world-class terminal for the handling of containers (275,000 TEU, 510 reefer plugs, 14.5 meter depth and 465 meter of quay) and general cargo.

APM Terminals has acquired the Vado Ligure Reefer Terminal as part of the port master plan to create new supply chains to markets in Northern Italy, Southern France, Switzerland and Bavaria. The Reefer Terminal is located adjacent to the construction site of the APM Terminals Vado port project which will open in January 2018 with 800,000 TEU annual capacity and a 17 meter depth to serve the vessels of the future. Reefer Terminal will continue to operate as a terminal highly specialized in the discharge and warehousing of fresh fruit and vegetable produce.

“The integration of the Vado Reefer Terminal with our new, future semi-automated container terminal enhances the logistics options for businesses and the shipping lines calling the Ligurian coast, serving all of Northern Italy and beyond” said APM Terminals Vado CEO Carlo Merli. “We are building Italy’s port of the future with ideal access to Turin and Northern Italy manufacturing zones as well as consumer markets. Equally important, we will have the best port system and product in the market capable of serving container vessels, reefer vessels, RoRo and breakbulk vessels”.

The Ligurian coast is a major entry point for refrigerated palletized fresh fruit into Northern Italy. The Vado Reefer Terminal has four rail tracks which will be linked to the off-dock rail facility being constructed as part of the APM Terminals Vado container terminal with direct access to interior destinations through an environmentally advantageous intermodal rail service.

“This sale represents a further step in the process of refocusing on our historical business of import and distribution of fruit and vegetable produce” said GF Group President Raffaella Orsero. “We will however remain a Reefer Terminal customer with our weekly Central American service, operated with four GF Group owned refrigerated vessels. We are delighted to hand over the baton to a key operator like APM Terminals and we are sure that they will continue at the highest level of professionalism guaranteeing further development.”

“We are excited to introduce a new, better way to serve global supply chains with our reefer terminal and its ideal fit with our deepwater container terminal. The APM Terminals Vado facility will be the only port in Italy able to handle Ultra-Large Container Ships (ULCS) of over 18,000 TEU capacity when it opens in January 2018” added Mr Merli.