Current terminal expansion plans and new-build projects around the globe have generated a surge of orders for spreader manufacturers. Some of the specific projects that prompted orders include the DP World London Gateway terminal and the Maasvlakte II project where operators have ordered their container handling equipment and are now placing their orders for spreaders. On the other side of the pond in California, USA, the Long Beach Container Terminal, a wholly owned subsidiary of Orient Overseas Container Line Ltd in Los Angeles has been driven by environmental decisions resulting in orders for large numbers of electric spreaders.
In addition to the rush of orders, and to satisfy the appetite for new spreader technology, manufacturers have not been sitting on their laurels waiting for the customers to come along. Instead, they have been very active in developing some new and interesting products.
In the September issue we highlighted the new activities of spreader manufacturer VDL containersystemen based in the Netherlands. The company entered the Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) market – a market currently dominated by Gottwald Port Technology (now Terex Gottwald) with a new AGV model. According to Pieter Verdonschot, Sales Manager spreaders, the company developed the AGV together with terminal operator ECT Rotterdam within one year and are currently finalising an order to supply 21 AGVs to the terminal.
But the good news doesn’t stop there for VDL. Verdonschot also reports on continued success for their electric spreader with rotation and gravity adjustment – one such model was delivered to a container terminal in the Netherlands at the beginning of this year. “We have received several orders for such a spreader and will supply 2 more of these spreaders to different customers this year,” said Verdonschot. In addition, VDL also developed a special piggyback spreader for an intermodal terminal in Germany. The spreader has a capacity of 48 tonnes and is able to lift trailers with a height up to 4m. According to VDL the spreader is conforming to the “Deutsche Bahn” specifications. The first two units of this spreader will be supplied to Rostock in Germany in 2013.
RAM Spreaders
Perhaps the biggest technology news comes from UK-based RAM Spreaders, part of the NSL Engineering Group based in Singapore. The intensive development by RAM engineers of the RAM SingFlex head-block system has enabled the company to secure a number of major contracts during the last 12 months. RAM SingFlex enables a ship-to-shore container crane fitted with a single hoist system to handle two telescopic spreaders simultaneously thereby improving productivity without the high expense of a full dual hoist crane. The system is particularly adaptable enabling it to be fitted to existing cranes not originally intended for tandem spreader operation. The unique design ensures that just as new spreaders have to work with the existing crane head-blocks in a terminal so RAM SingFlex as a new head-block system must work with the existing spreaders and utilise their quick release system(s). This is particularly important as terminals worldwide use many different variations of twist-lock and pin connections. As the changeover from single spreader to dual spreader operation must be achieved quickly to avoid delays, again the unique design of RAM SingFlex ensures that the usual five minutes allowed for this operation is easily achieved. This is due to the use of a docking station and the fact that during the changeover the master and slave head-blocks are always contained by the docking station thus ensuring consistent changeover timings. The use of the docking station has a second important feature and that is to ensure correct alignment between the component parts of the head-block. Since it is the head-blocks that are supported by the docking station spreaders of different types and makes within a terminal can be utilised thereby ensuring flexibility of operation. The only change to the spreaders is if the operational staff request side and end gather guides rather than the usual corner gather guides. RAM believe that the extensive work carried out by its R&D engineers over the last ten years for dual head-block systems suitable for both single and dual hoist cranes has resulted in RAM SingFlex and its sister system RAM DualFlex. This intensive programme of development has resulted in a full range of electric spreaders for all applications within a terminal including single lift spreaders for STS cranes (3400 series), single lift spreaders for RTG and RMG cranes (3500 series), twin-lift spreaders (fixed twins) for STS, RTG and RMG cranes (3600 series), centre-spread twin-lift spreaders (separating twins) for STS, RTG and RMG cranes (3900 series). The wide product range has resulted in many contracts with spreaders being delivered worldwide to all Continents, from the tropics to the intense cold of Siberian Russia. Additional features are available such as electric rotation with centre of gravity adjustment. Major benefits to a terminal are quiet operation that minimises background noise and lower operating costs due to reduced power consumption and less maintenance.
Bromma
For Bromma the two main areas that generated huge sales over the last couple of months have been California in the USA and Rotterdam in the Netherlands. In June 2012 the company had its second best month in its entire history with 150+ crane spreaders ordered during those 4 weeks. It is also reporting to achieve in-roads with its spreader fleet maintenance programme Green Zone – a programme that observes spreader functions and maintenance on the spreader. Bromma’s largest single order for ship-to-shore (STS) all-electric spreaders, an order for 18 STS45E all-electric spreaders, came from Long Beach Container Terminal (LBCT), and was part of a larger order from LBCT for a total of 50 all-electric spreaders. LBCT also ordered Green Zone on their new spreaders. In Rotterdam, Bromma received its largest single order for multi-lift Tandem spreaders, an order for 9 Tandem units to the new APM Terminals facility at Maasvlakte II. The order is part of a larger order for 31 high-capacity STS spreaders. APM Terminals specified Green Zone on 31 new spreaders. Bromma has also developed and added ‘Work Order’ to the Green Zone product family. Work Order creates living service plans that adapt in real time to specific changes in a spreader’s operational characteristics. It delivers pre-warning alarms that tell terminal maintenance managers when it is time to replace certain components, and it creates maintenance reminders based on both spreader cycles and service events. Work Order adapts to the unexpected and unplanned service warning by altering daily action schedules to address unanticipated issues. It is seamlessly integrated with the other modules in the Green Zone product family – Roadmap and Fleet Doctor. In the container yard, Bromma saw more and more [automated] terminals switching to all-electric spreaders and recently received a new automated terminal order for 22 Greenline yard spreaders from Global Terminals in New York. Other major automated terminal orders recently won by Bromma include 34YSX45E all-electric spreaders for Khalifa, Abu Dhabi, 40YSX45E all-electric spreaders for Barcelona, Spain, 10YSX45E all-electric spreaders for TraPac in Los Angeles and 20YSX45E all-electric spreaders for the London Gateway, UK. The company also received a record order of 56 crane spreaders to Colombo International Container in Sri Lanka, including 44 all-electric spreaders, plus 12 STS45 ship-to-shore spreaders. In the last couple of weeks Bromma was awarded a contract for 15 STS45 ship-to-shore crane spreaders for HHLA in Hamburg, Germany.