Joseph Bonney, Senior Editor | Jun 11, 2012 9:12AM EDT
APM Terminals has ordered 26 automated rail-mounted gantry cranes and two rail cranes from Austrian manufacturer Kuenz for APMT’s Rotterdam Maasvlakte II terminal.
The automated RMGs will lift and stow containers from automated guided vehicles that shuttle containers between the berth and rail terminal and will load and unload containers on truck chassis.
Maasvlakte II is scheduled to open in November 2014. It will be APM Terminals’ most highly automated terminal.
“We’re designing the terminal of the future to serve the ships of the future,” said Frank Tazelaar, managing director of APM Terminals Maasvlakte II. “These ARMGs will be the high performance workhorses of the terminal - capable of supporting the scale of container stack activity associated with multiple large container ships in port. Equally important, the ARMGs are good news for shippers and truckers due to their safety and efficiency.”
Truck drivers at the terminal will park their truck in a designated spot, exit their cab and wait in a secure area away from the automatic loading and unloading process.
At night or when the terminal is quiet, the system will use a “housekeeping” capability to restow or restack containers in the best spot for early morning truck appointments or for easy access for the next vessel load plan. This is designed to allow better efficiency at peak times.
The rail cranes will span eight tracks at Maasvlakte II’s eight-track intermodal terminal. They will be operated by a driver in the cabin but much of the activity will be automated. The rail cranes are configured for additional automation later, APM Terminals said.
For both crane types, Kuenz will use ABB as the supplier for the electrical and automation system.
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