in ship-to-shore crane market
Kalmar Industries, the leading manufacturer of container handling equipment, has beaten off stiff competition from five other crane manufacturers to win a tender to supply two new Nelcon ship-to-shore (STS) cranes to the Port Autonome de Rouen, France.
According to Kalmar´s Chief Executive, Christer Granskog, this order demonstrates very forcibly the correctness of the strategy now being pursued by Kalmar in the highly-competitive STS market:
"Nelcon has a fantastic reputation in the industry for manufacturing STS cranes incorporating state-of-the-art technology. It has been highly successful selling them in its home base, Rotterdam, and in neighbouring ports.
"Notably in 2001, when Nelcon became part of the Kalmar family, its potential grew further, especially as it then became able to take advantage of Kalmar¡¦s strong sales and service network. This order from Rouen shows that through access to the Kalmar distribution network, new previously uncharted territories are now open to these highly regarded products from Rotterdam. We are confident of being in a position to announce further orders within the next few months."
This new order and other orders now in the pipeline are also proving the modular concept. One basic crane design can be adapted to suit the needs of many different operators. Not only can height and outreach be varied to suit individual terminals´needs but so can speed, levels of automation and a host of other features.
Most significantly though, the availability of the new modular crane design means that the cost of these technically advanced cranes has been driven down and this is of direct benefit to port and terminal operators. In all, the modular designed cranes are now competitive even in distant markets, and are available with comparatively fast delivery times.
Destined for use within the Grand Couronne Moulineaux container terminal, the Rouen cranes will be shipped to the terminal where they will then be erected on the quayside. Notably, the portal and upper structure (bridge girder) will be shipped in two separate pieces. Once assembled, the upper structure will be lifted into place by an integrated Kalmar hoisting system that is mounted on top of the portal legs themselves.
The deal with Port Autonome de Rouen was arranged by Kalmar France. The new order follows one received at the end of 1999 for four cranes for various terminals in Le Havre.
In making the decision to invest in Nelcon STS cranes, representatives from the Port Autonome de Rouen visited Le Havre to see the machines in operation. They were impressed with what they saw. Mr Kovarik, Directeur de l´amenagement et environnement, Port Autonome de Rouen, comments:
"Before we signed the deal with Kalmar we visited both the Port of Le Havre and the Port of Rotterdam several times; both operate Nelcon ship-to-shore cranes. At the Port of Rouen, we already employ three STS cranes; however there was a need for two more high-performance, low-maintenance, reliable cranes for use in our terminal. These visits gave us an opportunity to see the Nelcon machines in operation and enabled us to gauge whether or not they would be able to meet our handling needs.
"On both visits we took a selection of drivers with us- their opinions are very important to us. The drivers, for example, noted that the cranes appeared to be very stable. This then became a deciding factor. Good after sales care is also important to us and the testimonials from the operational staff in Le Havre and Rotterdam regarding the level of support available from both Kalmar¡¦s local network and its factory in Rotterdam definitely helped swing the deal in Kalmar´s favour."
Modular design
The Nelcon modular ship-to-shore crane design is unique in many ways. Designed to handle the demands of both today´s and tomorrow´s ships, the cranes are well built, sturdy and reliable. As stated earlier, the modular concept means that different specifications in railspan, outreach, hoisting height and electrical installation can all be accommodated without changing the overall design of the crane. This means that the cranes can be customised to meet the customer´s needs and yet are still available with short delivery times.
Taking advantage of this, the Port Autonome de Rouen, when placing its order for its STS cranes, requested a 39 metre outreach, a 27 metre railspan, a 4 metre backreach, a hoisting height / depth of 32.5 / 15 metres and a hoisting speed (loaded/ empty) of 60 / 120 meters / min.
Whilst able to customise the cranes to meet set specifications, customers are still able to take advantage of the crane´s standard features. These include:
-Twin lift spreaders (2x20ft)
- Tandem lifting (2x40ft)
- Hoisting / lowering speeds of 90 m/min
- Simple reeving system with a minimum number of large sheaves resulting in a longer operational lifespan of the standard steel wire ropes
- High accelerations
- Rigid crane structure
- Ergonomically designed operator cabin
- Easily accessible single maintenance point; all the crane¡¦s mechanical systems, ie its winches, trim/list devices and anti-snagload device, are located in one machinery house
Impressive after sales care
All the machines developed and assembled in Rotterdam ie STS cranes, high-speed straddle carriers and rail mounted stacking cranes, are part of the global Kalmar brand and as such they are covered by Kalmar´s extensive after sales care service. Whilst the Nelcon STS crane has been praised by many for being both economical and easy to maintain, Kalmar customers can rest assured that specialists are immediately accessible should any difficulties be encountered.
Over 100 STS cranes have been built since the first came off the production line in 1977. The modular crane design was conceived in association with a number of leading terminal operators in 2001. Two modular design cranes are now being commissioned at Uniport / Morcon in Rotterdam.
Note to Editors
A picture of the Nelcon modular STS crane is available and can be downloaded from the Dunelm PR website, www.dunelmpr.co.uk The caption for the photograph reads:
"Kalmar Industries, the leading manufacturer of container handling equipment, has beaten off stiff competition from five other European crane manufacturers to win a tender to supply two new Nelcon ship-to-shore (STS) cranes to the Port Autonome de Rouen, France."
Kalmar is a global provider of heavy duty materials handling equipment and services to ports, intermodal traffic, terminals and demanding industrial customers. Kalmar focuses on supplying handling solutions that enable customers to operate with a high level of efficiency and reliability. Every fourth container or trailer transfer at terminals around the world is handled by a Kalmar machine. Kalmar provides a large range of value added services such as maintenance contracts and fleet management. Manufacturing plants are situated in Sweden (as is the head office), in Finland, in the USA, in the Netherlands and in Estonia.