Hanging Around

In terms of gross tonnage, efficiency and marketplace importance, it’s hard to top today’s container cranes

Moving millions of tonnes of goods daily, container cranes remain an integral part of global commerce. These massive structures efficiently and effectively load and unload roughly 90 per cent of the world’s shipped goods, in an almost robotic fashion. Operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, these colossal cranes offer little in subtlety or wastefulness, moving on average 25 to 30 TEU containers an hour, with very little downtime.

Classified by their lifting capacity and the size of ships they can load or unload, container cranes are generally grouped in three categories: Panamax, Post-Panamax and Super-Post Panamax. Panamax cranes can fully load and unload ships capable of passing through the Panama Canal, normally 13 container rows wide. A Post-Panamax crane often handles ships too large for the Panama Canal, normally 18 container rows wide. Today, the popularity of Super-Post Panamax cranes remains unprecedented, capable of handling vessels 22 container rows wide or more. As larger container ships such as the Emma Maersk continue to set sail, ports must be capable of taking on today’s ever-increasing larger loads. As ships continue to grow, so too must container cranes.

Today, Shanghai Zhenhua Port Machinery (ZPMC) is recognised as the gold standard for container cranes. As the only crane manufacturer in the world that owns vessels for transportation, ZPMC’s cranes sit in 120 terminals around the world. According to World Cargo News, ZPMC has maintained the largest order book for the past eight years, while continuing to increase market share. Their latest quayside container cranes are drawing rave reviews within the port community and remain in high demand. They are renowned for the ability to handle twin 40 foot containers, or four 20 foot containers in one pull. Cranes capable of lifting six 20 foot containers have been designed, but have yet to reach implementation.

As the only crane manufacturer possessing its own bulk cargo ships, ZPMC builds cranes at any of its six Chinese manufacturing bases and delivers them fully assembled and ready for operation. With 18 bulk carriers (60,000 DWT), able to carry up to four quayside container cranes at a time, these loaded ships are truly a sight to behold. The cranes are 103 metres high with the boom up and weigh 1,850 tonnes a piece. Total time from order to delivery takes about two years with ZPMC being able to construct 125 cranes at one time.

Though automation is becoming more and more common, crane operators remain an important asset. Their training is a rigorous one, as mistakes can prove costly, both in terms of damaged goods and time lost. DP World puts its trainees through a thorough four-week simulator course that would rival most airline pilots’ schooling. Sitting inside the simulator, fully equipped with state-of-the-art visuals and lifelike movements and controls, it is easy to see how these crane operators become so efficient and mistake-free.

“Today, Rotterdam Port is fully automatic. They process 20 to 25 containers an hour, requiring wholly automated synchronisation of trucks and cranes,” says Mansour Rashed of DP World.

“However, in Jebel Ali Port, with a greater combination of manpower and automation, we can do 35 an hour. We take this to mean, as of today, a fully automated port is not as efficient,” says Rashed.

Whether this can be attributed to a better-trained labour force, or perhaps just slower automated processes, Rashed agrees the future lies in automation. Though in his opinion, technology still has a long way to go.

POWERLIFTING

Typically, container cranes derive their power from either of two sources: Older cranes are predominantly driven by diesel generators; while more modern cranes are operated by electric power from the dock. Requiring 10,000 to 12,000 volts, these electric container cranes experience fewer breakdowns and, as one DP World official explains, are far more ‘green’. With ambitions of eventually taking on a staggering 80 million TEUs annually, DP World recently purchased three fully-assembled ZPMC quayside container cranes that operate with electricity and it has several more on order.

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