truck, which ranges in lifting ca-pacity from 5 to 50 tons, but ter-minal tractors, reachstackers andspecialist machines are also in-cluded in the series.”

Kalmar’s President and CEOChrister Granskog, comments on

the company’s growth in the in-dustrial handling segment:

“In recent years we have ex-panded our container handling

Left Mr Fernand Brasseur, Presidentof CNM, with Juhani Lukumaa,President of Kalmar ContainerHandling, at a party to celebrate thedelivery of the 100th Kalmar straddlecarrier to France.

The rapidly growing consumptionpower of Turkey’s 70 million-strongpopulation is generating an explo-sion in container traffic throughthe country’s ports. In addition, thegovernment is keen to develop do-mestic coastal services to help al-leviate the heavy congestion on itsroads, while there are also plans totransform the Marmara area into ahub for feeder services bound forthe Black Sea.

Turkey’s largest private port,Kumport, in Istanbul, is busy pre-paring itself for future challenges.

Interview of General Manager,Cüneyd Acar (pictured) onpage 16.

A G L O B A L B U S I N E S S M A G A Z I N E F R O M K A L M A R I N D U S T R I E S, N O. 1 / 2 0 0 4

More information:Michel Geernaert

Tel +33 2 35248300Fax +33 2 35248308

michel.geernaert@kalmarind.com worldKalmar around the

Continues on page 4

In 2002 Kalmar launched a com-pletely new medium-weighttruck, with a 9- to 18-ton liftingcapacity. It is now launching acomplete series in the weightclass below this. Explains LeifWallin, President, Kalmar Industri-al Systems:

“The launch of our new seriesof 5- to 9-ton trucks is a part ofour expansion. It provides excel-lent breadth, ranging from thePremium model to a more basi-cally equipped model that willgive us the opportunity to reachcustomers in new markets.

“A comprehensive range ofversatile and powerful productsis important to our industrial cus-tomers. We are involved in theentire logistics chain: during pro-duction, at the warehouse and intransportation. Our most impor-tant product is the counterweight

The owner of La Compagnie Nouvelle de Manutention(CNM), Fernand Brasseur, introduced straddle carriersinto the French port industry in 1987 with the purchaseof the first Kalmar straddle carrier. Last autumn, there-fore, when Kalmar delivered its 100th straddle carrier toFrance, it was only right that the recipient of this partic-ular machine should also be CNM.

Compagnie Nouvelle de Ma-nutention Portuaire (CNMP), thedivision of CNM is today one ofthe largest terminal operators inthe Port of Le Havre. This latestaddition to CNM’s straddle carri-er fleet is now operating along-side that very first Kalmar strad-dle carrier delivered over 18years ago, which is still runningwith 37,000 working hours underits belt.

Record-breakingorderMSC Home Terminal opts forKalmar's reliable technology anddelivery times.

Continues on page 20

........business, both through acquisi-tions and by virtue of organicgrowth, so that we are now theworld leader in the field. We havealso consolidated our position inthe heavy industrial field and,bearing in mind that Kalmar hasits roots in industrial handling, wehave sound experience and ex-pertise within the company. Thisis a resource that gives us pro-found insight into this sector’sdemanding handling require-ments. Our ambition is to growfurther and we intend to do thisby offering the best products andthe best service in the market.”

Mr Brasseur has been a vi-sionary, spearheading the devel-opment of French container han-dling for decades. These days, MrBrasseur is widely regarded asone of the pioneers of the Frenchcontainer terminal industry dueto his recognition of the possibili-ties that the increased speed andflexibility offered by straddle car-riers could have for French portsand their customers. His faith inKalmar’s straddle carrier hasbeen borne out by the fact thatthere are now 100 units operat-ing in several major ports aroundthe country.

Progressive development

While CNM’s origins date back asearly as the 1920s, Mr Brasseurdecided to create a materialshandling company in 1944 todeal with the difficulties of get-ting goods to and from the port.He started the company with justfour colleagues, who are still in-volved in the business today –along with a further 500 employ-ees. During the past 60 years, hehas progressively developedcontainer handling, forwarding,warehousing and basically every-

thing relating to modern terminaloperations.

Today, Mr Brasseur could jus-tifiably be content to sit back andenjoy the fruits of his a success-ful business. “But the real satis-faction in life comes from work-ing together with good col-leagues,” he says.

However, he admits thatthings haven’t always been easy.In fact, he says that there weretimes in his life when he couldsee no light at the end of the tun-nel. One such time came with thedecommissioning of the Frenchnavy after the second world war.Mr Brasseur had been in the navyand believed it to be his life, sowhen it suddenly disappeared hehad to reconsider his whole fu-ture.

In everything he has done hesays Mr Brasseur says he has al-ways followed his intuition andkept a clear goal in his mind. Heis a firm believer in sticking to thechosen route. And it obviouslyworks. CNM has been involved ineach and every major step thathas seen Le Havre emerge as thecountry’s busiest container port.Port of Le Havre has grown mark-edly over the years and volumesare continuing to expand. The fig-ures from 2003 show an annualgrowth of 15 percent in containertraffic, which now stands at al-most 2 million TEUs.

100th Kalmar straddle carrier delivered in France

A bon voyage for Frenchcontainer handling

A smart future

An expandingproduct portfolio

Leif Wallin

Continues on page 8

........

Tractors triumphin EsbjergScandic Terminal in Esbjerg has11 new Kalmar terminal tractorsoperating in the terminal.

Continues on page 18

Good serviceKalmar supplies equipment andcontract maintenance services toHamina Multimodal Terminals Ky(HMT).

........

RTGs getHIGHERat Gdynia

Kalmar and Baltic Contain-er Terminal Ltd (BCT) inGdynia, Poland, havesigned an agreement underwhich Kalmar is to increasethe height of the eightKalmar rubber-tyred gantrycranes (RTGs) currently inoperation. This modifica-tion will raise the liftingcapacity of the cranes from1 over 3 to 1 over 5 contain-ers and increase BCT’s han-dling capacity from anannual 400,000TEU to600,000TEU. As part of itsexpansion plans, BCT hasalso placed an order forfour new Kalmar 5+1 wideRTGs capable of lifting 1over 5 containers high.BCT Gdynia urgently need-ed to increase its containerhandling capacity andcrane heightening provedto be the fastest and mostcost-effective way to goabout it, especially consid-ering that the machines arereasonably new and still inexcellent condition.

Kalmar will supply thetechnical calculations, elec-tricity and PLC programmesand documentation as wellas the materials needed forthe rebuild. The customerwill perform the installa-tion under Kalmar’s super-vision. The work begins atGdynia in late May andshould be completed byOctober.

The BCT project isextensive as the machineswill be dismantled andthen re-assembled with thenew parts. The schedule istight, but it has beenagreed that the customerwill be able to continue dai-ly operations with minimaldisturbance.

Kari Ronkainen,General Manager, Parts andProjects says that thedevelopment of a success-ful technical solution suchas this is an important stepforward for Kalmar. Heexplains:

“It is a solution that willbe valuable for many termi-nals where physicalgrounds cannot be extend-ed and the only possible di-rection for growth is up-wards. By extending thecontainer stacking height,capacity can be increasedconsiderably.

Heightening projectboosts BCT Gdynia’shandling capacity by 50%

32

Big changes to logistics routesand shipping services are takingplace at the moment. Companiesinvolved in the internationaltransportation of goods by landand sea are facing challenges asthey are working to meet de-mand for their services in thegrowing business environmentwith more materials moving andmore container traffic.

The so-called China syndrome,whereby production is being trans-ferred from wealthy countries tothose with much lower labour costs,is a widely discussed topic today.China’s already huge export volumescontinue to increase – 2003 saw con-tainerized exports increase 32.9% –and we already see that seven ofChina’s ports (plus Hong Kong) arenow ranked in the world’s top 30.Even if forecasters are right and therate of increase in China’s exports willdecrease to ‘only’ 15% in 2004, that isstill a lot of extra containers that needto be handled.

Ships outbound from Asia forEurope and North America have beensailing full for over a year and DrewryShipping Consultants estimated thatat the end of 2003, there were almost500 post-Panamax container shipsaggregating three million TEU in ser-vice or on order. Ports are somehowexpected to cope with this size in-crease by building bigger berths anddredging deeper approach channels.

Inevitably, there is a downsidetoo, especially for the carriers. Thedeepsea trades out of Asia are be-coming imbalanced, requiring hun-dreds of thousands of containers tobe shipped back as empties, and fac-tors such as the US removing quotason imported apparel and textile prod-ucts at the end of 2004, will furtherexacerbate this problem. For termi-nals, of course, every box, empty orfull, has to be handled and so eventhis growing imbalance means newbusiness opportunities.

For the time being, at least, themajor areas of consumption stay inEurope and the US. Imports frommanufacturing areas lead to the de-velopment of bigger logistics centerswhich are very common already in

the US and becoming more commonin Europe. This creates again moretraffic flows and new logistics needs.

In Europe, most forecasters areanticipating a mini version of theChina syndrome coming with the ex-pansion of the EU from 15 to 25 coun-tries. Many larger companies areswitching production capacity toEastern Europe and the process isexpected to accelerate as these tennew countries join up.

This all results in changes tologistics routes and shipping servicesthat are taking place at the momentcreating new needs. The impact onthose involved in container handling,be they ports, inland rail or barge ter-minals, or suppliers of services andequipment to the industry, is vast.What added value can partnershipwith Kalmar offer our customerswhen they find ways to cope with thechanging business environment?

They can be sure that high quali-ty, reliable equipment from our com-prehensive product portfolio will beavailable. They also can be confidentthat full servicing capabilities exist, nomatter where the operating locationmay be. Santos or Shanghai, Montrealor Mumbai, Kalmar is there.

Operating worldwide gives Kal-mar extensive knowledge of what ishappening in the industry and allowsus to predict with reasonable certain-ty its future needs. Our customersknow that our continuous R&D effortsguarantee models that suit their spe-cific needs.

Kalmar is itself a global company,it is well-positioned to work with thelargest container terminal operatorsthat may have facilities located allaround the world. Working with a sin-gle office that has global purchasingresponsibilities is routine for Kalmar.

Consequently, I am confident insaying that Kalmar customers, largeand small and wherever they are lo-cated, have a reliable partner in fac-ing the challenges of today and to-morrow when they work closely withKalmar.

Christer GranskogPresident and CEOKalmar Industries

Publisher: Benoît PassardKalmar IndustriesPO Box 878, Kungsgatan 70SE-101 37 StockholmTel + 46 8 700 51 40benoit.passard@kalmarind.com

Layout: imageneering | worldwidepartners, Tampere, Finland

Editor: Aija KalanderKalmar IndustriesP.O.Box 387FIN-33101 TampereTel +358 3 2658 111aija.kalander@kalmarind.com

PRINTED BY: Offset Ulonen Oy,Tampere, Finland, 2004

worldworldKalmar around the

CO

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EN

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No fluke that IKEA in Älmhult aredriving Kalmar machines.......................................3

Kalmar challenges expectations with powerfulnew series of precision light fork-lift trucks..........4

Heavy handling solutions .......................................6

Record-breaking gantry crane order ......................8

Five-year service offering swingsInterforest STS deal................................................8

Winning customers overwith the personal touch.......................................10

Peinemann bakes a cake for RSC.........................11

Moving the monster Airbus..................................12

Hassle-free handling of high-value kit..................14

Keeping it fresh! ...................................................15

Kumport goes from strength to strength ............16

Terminal tractors triumph in Esbjerg ...................18

Good service breeds close co-operation..............20

GreenSeas Trust....................................................22

A Box for Europe...................................................23

100th Kalmar straddle carrier delivered in FranceA bon voyage forFrench container handling ..................................24

RTGs get HIGHER at Gdynia ..................................24

“Terminal tractors were the most environmentally

friendly and cost-effective way for us to meet our trans-

porter needs. And when it comes to reachstackers, we

had no choice if we wanted to be efficient.”

Flexible and clean

Within the warehouse area, thetwo terminal tractors operateabout 1,500 hours a year in twoshifts. A large part of the goods-moving operations has been car-ried out using the terminal trac-tors.

“They’re flexible and moreefficient than the old tow cars weused to use, as well as meetingthe environmental requirementswe have for vehicle engines,” JanHelgesson relates.

“And what’s more, they’recheaper to run!”

No fluke that

IKEAin Älmhult aredriving Kalmar machines

IKEA’s gigantic storage facility im-mediately outside Älmhult. A fa-cility covering an area of 240,000square metres and 180,000 cubicmetres of warehousing space,handling 700,000 cubic metres ofgoods every year.

Efficiency is a must

“It goes without saying that wehave to be efficient,” JanHelgesson says, “and Kalmar’sterminal tractors and reachstack-ers are more cost-effective.”

“Much of the freight arrivingat IKEA’s central stores in Älmhultreaches us in containers andrequires reloading before beingsent out to the individual super-stores. But a large proportion ofthe goods also arrives by lorry(approximately 100 trucks a day)or by rail.”

At the multimodal terminaladjacent to the stores, two reach-stackers work to unload goodsfrom trains for ongoing transpor-tation to the warehouse by towcar or terminal tractor.

Little option

“Since things are so cramped atthe combi-terminal, we reallydidn’t have any alternative toreachstackers if we wanted to beefficient,” Jan Helgesson ex-plains. “Especially as we need tostore containers two-deep tomake room for all the goods.”

The two reachstackers in theservice of IKEA are each in oper-ation for about 1,500 hours andperform more than 20,000 lifts ayear.

“To all intents and purposes,servicing and maintenance areperformed by our own in-houseservice shop in Älmhult, whichhas been given basic reachstack-er training at Kalmar’s factory inLidhult, Sweden.”

“Our reachstackers not onlygive us efficiency, but flexibility aswell,” says Jan Helgesson. “Theycan be used to lift both contain-ers and trailers.”

Jan Helgesson is incharge of purchas-ing at IKEA’s largecentralized ware-housing facility,

Centrallager Syd, inÄlmhult, Sweden. And

what IKEA doesn’t knowabout low costs and efficiency isnot worth knowing!

IKEA – that thoroughly Swed-ish enterprise that has come tovirtually symbolize efficiency andlow costs and whose founder,Ingvar Kamprad, continues to flyeconomy-class.

Those penny-pinchingSmålanders

People from the Swedish prov-ince of Småland – Smålanders, asthey’re known – are generallyregarded as being rather stingy.But Smålanders aren’t reallymean; they’re cost-conscious!

That’s something which isvery much reflected at IKEA too.They used to use ordinary towcars to move trailers, semi-trailers and containers around

More information:Jan Ohlsson

Tel +46 8 445 3800Fax +46 8 445 3838

jan.ohlsson@kalmarind.com

Global trendspresent great

opportunities forcontainerhandling

specialists

“FlexCab/FlexGuard are ro-bust, flexible cabs that do not in-corporate the same high level ofequipment as the Spirit Deltacabs. Similarly, the trucks do notoffer all the electronic functionsprovided in the Premium models.This truck will allow us to reachnew customers who previouslyconsidered Kalmar machines tobe too advanced and thus too ex-pensive.”

According to Mr Rietz, a keyaim of this machine is to offerowners minimum total costs:

“Increased availability andfewer unplanned stoppages arethe most important factors inachieving lower costs. Strong ba-sic construction and a number ofcomponent improvements con-tribute to this, while easy accessfor daily inspection and service-friendly solutions are also impor-tant.”

A scope of drives andengines

The range of drives and enginesavailable in the new series is im-pressive. Customers can choosebetween a traditional gearbox, ahydrostatic or power drive and adiesel or LPG engine. The truckswith a gearbox are robust, pow-erful and suitable for varioustypes of demanding industrialhandling. The hydrostatic driveprovides a superb driving experi-ence and, because the truck’sspeed and lifting function aremutually independent, offersmaximum precision.

The electric option

There remains a strong marketfor electric trucks where emis-sion requirements are particular-ly stringent, such as for indoorwork. Kalmar is one of the fewmanufacturers that can offerelectric trucks with a capacity ofup to 9 tons. Says Mr Reitz:

“We see clear growth poten-tial for electric trucks – growththat will undoubtedly be spurredon by the launch of these new,improved models. This growth isprincipally in the field of ware-house handling, where electrictrucks are an excellent solutionfor the local environment due totheir elimination of exhaust emis-sions and noise disturbances.”

More information onwww.kalmarind.com

? 5

dom to work in the best ergo-nomic position for the job inquestion. As a result, the field ofvision is better and the risk of in-jury to driver and goods decreas-es.”

The other cab alternatives areSpirit Delta, which has been fur-ther developed with greaterwidth for increased spacious-ness, and the new FlexCab/FlexGuard. This is a solution thatbasically comprises a roll barwith strong, profiled beams. Itcan be varied using panes anddoors in accordance with thecustomer’s requirements and cli-matic variations.

Emission-approved engines

Two new turbo-charged dieselengines from Perkins have beenintroduced too – a four-cylinderoption suited to the lighter end ofthe range and a six-cylinder en-gine for the upper end. ExplainsMr Johansson:

“The new engines have goodtractive force with a high torquedirect from low revs, which is im-portant for efficient handling. Theexhaust emissions are very low,exceeding the Stage 2 require-ments by a considerable margin.Sound emissions are also far low-er than before.” A new V8 LPG engine devel-oped by GM specifically for LPGdrive is also available, providingvery good fuel economy andremarkable reliability.

“All the engines have as op-tional extras catalysers and parti-cle filters, which further reduceexhaust emissions. The LPG en-gine with additional catalyserproduces exhaust gases that ba-sically only consist of carbon di-oxide and water,” saysStefan Johansson.

New hydrostatic drivesand gearbox

Kalmar is now launching two newhydrostatic drive systems.

In the electronically regulatedhydrostatic drive the engine,transmission and hydraulics areintegrated into the same system.Fast processors and power-controlled outputs provide im-mediate response and stablesteering. The driver can benefitfrom extreme precision com-bined with powerful handling.The second system is a tradition-al mechanically regulated hy-drostat, which provides a gooddriving experience.

Trucks with gearboxes arebased on hydrodynamic trans-mission. Automatic transmissionis available as an optional extra.Mr Johansson says:

“Thanks to the new electron-ics, automatic transmission hasimproved and is now evensmoother and softer.”

Fast electronics and easyservicing

The new truck range featuresKCS, Kalmar’s new electronicssystem. Built using fast proces-sors and CAN-bus technology, itprovides opportunities for intelli-gent optional extras.

“KCS is a very reliable system,as we know from experiencewith our medium-weight series.Another advantage is that easilycomprehensible symbols areshown on the driver’s display,making the system completelylanguage-independent. A newand easy-to-use servicing toolmakes it simple to locate anyfaults, as well as update softwareand other settings,” explains MrJohansson.

New ORFS couplings anddouble seals have been fitted inthe hydraulic cylinders, makingthe system practically leakage-free. Large inspection hatches onthe machine simplify daily in-spection and by tipping the cab itis easy to expose the entire driveline to carry out major work.

Kalmar has launched a new, improved series offork-lift trucks with a capacity of 5 to 9 tons.Three different cab concepts, power, diesel orLPG drive and a number of accessories meancustomers can custom-build the exact machinethey require.

The new FLT series ranges from the cutting-edge Premium model to a more basicallyequipped model, designed for those customerswho do not require the benefits that comewith the premium model and its advancedsolutions. The main objective of the new seriesis to offer customers a powerful and suitablyequipped machine that combines minimaldowntime with low overall costs and a highlevel of productivity.

Kalmar’s product development is progress-ing at an impressive pace, with the launch ofa number of new reachstackers, straddlecarriers and terminal tractors in recent years.Just over a year ago the world’s most ad-vanced medium-weight truck was alsolaunched and Kalmar is now following thiswith a comprehensive new series of trucksin the weight class below.

Unbeatable breadth

Mikael Rietz, VP Sales & Market-ing, Industrial Systems, Kalmar,comments on the key advantages of thislatest range:

“With the launch of the new series weare achieving a number of important mile-stones. We are offering the most up-to-date

and efficient truck on the market, furtherbroadening our range in the 5- to 9-tonweight class and further refining Kalmar’scomplete range of powerful 5- to 50-tontrucks. The new trucks are consolidating ourposition with existing customers and simulta-neously giving us a real opportunity to reachnew customers and new markets.”

An excellent driving experience

Kalmar has always been known for designingwell-built and well-equipped machines thatmeet the very toughest requirements in thefield of heavy industrial handling. This newseries takes the development a stage further,says Mr Reitz:

“Our Premium models – the most ad-vanced trucks in the series – have becomeeven more cutting-edge. The new Spirit DeltaSpace and enhanced Spirit Delta driving envi-ronments are both so well-equipped and spa-cious that drivers can do more than just drivethe truck. They can now effectively look afteradministration and operate a terminal or PC,which allows them to deal with a lot of thelogistics work.”

Freedom of choice

For customers who do not need the mostadvanced solutions, a more basic diesel orpower-drive model has also been launched,explains Mr Reitz:

“To give customers maximum choice inacquiring the machine that best suits their re-quirements we are now offering a more basicmachine with fewer functions and optionsbut with Kalmar quality and reliability at a veryattractive price.”

The new range incorporates thelatest technology to offer newdesign features, drive lines anddriving environments as well as anumber of new component solu-tions. The overall result is a more

efficient product, explains StefanJohansson, Development Manag-er for Kalmar Industrial Systems.

Focus on ergonomics

The most important develop-ment is the field of vision therange offers to drivers. The coun-terweights are gently roundedand adapted to give drivers themaximum field of vision to therear. At the front, cylinders andhoses are positioned so that theyconceal as little as possible. SaysMr Johansson:

“With the Spirit Delta cab wehave established an industrystandard that others are trying toachieve, while we are now pro-ceeding to the next stage. For thenew 5- to 9-tonner we have de-veloped three alternative con-cepts to suit the needs of differ-ent customers and industries.”

Fully rotating seat

The biggest cab innovation iscalled Spirit Delta Space – cabwith room for every conceivableitem of extra equipment. Thedriving seat, can be rotated 180 °in either direction.

“Using simple controls thedriver is able to fully rotate hisseat both quickly and easily. Hecan drive facing forwards, back-wards or in any intermediate po-sition. This gives the driver free-

The new series combine technologyand efficiency for a unique

driving experience

Kalmar challengesexpectations

with powerful new series of precision light fork-lift trucks

Continued from page 1

6 7

The orders reflect Kalmar’sacknowledged track-record intackling diverse and often com-plex handling assignments, saysMikael Rietz, VP Sales andMarketing, Kalmar IndustrialSystems: “We’ve made a num-ber of significant breakthroughsin interesting markets. Kalmar issupplying more and more forklifttrucks to both new and returningcustomers. Wherever heavy han-dling requirements are growing,Kalmar is in there.”

Feeding global portdevelopment

SA Stevedores in South Africahas expanded its cargo handlingfleet with five additional 15-tonneKalmar trucks, this time equippedwith a detachable counter-weight. The machinery is to beused at the stevedore company’sinstallations in Durban. SA Steve-dores, which has been suppliedwith a number of heavy-dutytrucks in the past, is hiring allmachines from Saficon, Kalmar’sSouth African dealer. Meanwhile,P&O Durban has also purchasedfour medium trucks.

Moving to Asia, China contin-ues to report vigorous develop-ment. For the brand-new har-

Over the past six months Kalmar has reinforced its posi-

tion as the leading supplier of heavy forklift trucks for

ports and industry. Kalmar has secured a number of

orders in its major Europe, Middle East, and Africa

(EMEA) market and made significant progress in North

America.

More information:Mikael Rietz

Tel +46 372 26112Fax +46 372 263 66

mikael.rietz@kalmarind.com

bourside facilities at Ningbo Port,close to Shanghai, Kalmar is sup-plying three heavy-duty trucks.The container manufacturerShunde Shun and the port ofTianjin have both purchasedKalmar empty-containerhandlers capable of stackingcontainers five high.

Medway Ports in the UK haspurchased four Kalmar trucks forits mixed cargo handling opera-tions. These trucks are the first tobe delivered to the UK withKalmar’s new Flexcab and pow-ertrain, the Dana 13000. In addi-tion to forks, they are able tooperate with a variety of special-ist attachments to handle differ-ent types of cargo.

Kalmar has also deliveredaround ten heavy-duty trucks toa number of ports in the Mediter-ranean. Two of these units aregoing to the Port of Sokhna inEgypt. Stevedoring CompanySappsa Pasajes in Spain is alsousing Kalmar machines and atthe Black Sea port ofNovorossisk, two 20-tonne Kal-mar trucks are currently in oper-ation. Meantime, Kalmar has re-cently closed a deal to supply acustomer in Syria with a series oflightweight trucks for cargo han-dling.

Handling paper and forestryproducts

For a long time now, Kalmarmachines have occupied astrong position within the forest-ry product industry. Their excel-lent accessibility, unsurpasseddriver environment and valuableoperating economies generate alarge amount of business interms of both new and returncustomers.

International Paper in the US,one of the world’s largest sawmilland paper conglomerates, is arecent convert to Kalmar trucks.In an important breakthrough forKalmar, the company has nowbought its first machine followinga trial operating period.Tool Logistics, a member ofGermany’s Gluns Group, hasrecently purchased six Kalmartrucks for inventory managementand offloading chipboard inSaarland, while Friesau-basedKlausner Holz, another Germantimber company, has ordered six15-tonners to handle its lumber.

Austria’s Mayr-Melnhof iscontinuing to expand its fleetwith an order for seven Kalmartrucks with a lifting capacity of 16tonnes to service its operationsin the Czech Republic. Kalmarmakes its mark on heavy indus-try.

Kalmar’s ability to adaptmachinery to extreme handlingenvironments proved the deal-clincher when foundry operatorFritz Winter needed trucks tohandle its castings. The job calledfor machines with proper safe-guards against heat and steelsplash, to guarantee driver safetyas well as to prevent machinereliability from being jeopardised.By offering a neatly customisedsolution, Kalmar was entrustedwith the task of supplying tenspecially equipped trucks with an8-tonne lifting capacity.The UK’s Tarmac Concrete, whichis part of leading global miningand mineral specialist, AngloAmerican plc, has againincreased its fleet of 10-tonneKalmar trucks with the purchaseof a further seven. The machinesare being used to lift Tarmac’svarious stone, concrete, brick andtile products.

Kalmar has also achieved animportant breakthrough in Turkeythrough its deal with the Turkishsteel producer Içdas for the pur-chase of six 15-tonne trucks. Themachines are to be used for han-dling large steel wire coils. Kalmaris also supplying 13 trucks toISPAT Hamburger Stahlwerke forthe same kind of activity. Versatil-ity reaps rewards.

Through Kalmar’s UK dealer,Masterlift, a wide range ofmachines have been sold to avariety of users, most recentlytrucks with an 8-14 tonne liftingcapacity and empty-containerhandlers. UK fertiliser manufac-turer ABP Fertiliser has chosenfour 9-tonne Kalmar trucks to liftlarge sacks of fertiliser products.Ford, Opel, BMV, Daimler Chryslerand Audi are major buyers ofKalmar’s larger electric-poweredtrucks and have over the lastyear purchased eight machines.These trucks are being usedinside the manufacturers’ facto-ries to provide environmentallyfriendly handling of items such ascrates full of car parts and toolsfor large presses.

Norwegian armed forceschoose Kalmar

Kalmar has also secured a dealwith the Norwegian NationalDefence for a series of 16-tonnetrucks with appropriate add-onsfor the military airports inGardemoen and Bodø. Themachines will be loading andunloading large Galaxy militaryaircraft.

Another Norwegian custom-er – this time the breweryRingnäs – has also chosenKalmar to handle beer and softdrinks. The company has takendelivery of a truck equipped witha vertically adjustable cab thatcan be lowered or raised toenhance precision and providedrivers with the best conceivableall-round view.

Kalmar machines occupy a leading position in the forestry product industry.

Kalmar forklifts make light workof heavy handling for Germany'sHamburger Stahlwerke.

Heavy handling solutions

8 9

The biggest Europeanship-to-shore crane orderof all time was awarded toKalmar at the end of lastyear when MSC Home Ter-minal, a joint venturebetween Hesse-NoordNatie (HNN) and Mediter-ranean Shipping Company(MSC) at Antwerp'sDelwaidedok, ordered tensuper post-Panamax gan-try cranes with an optionfor a further eight.

More information:René Kleiss

Tel +31 102946702Fax +31 102946778

rene.kleiss@kalmarind.com

With an outreach of 56 metres,these high-speed, heavy-dutycranes will be capable of han-dling ships over 20 containerswide. The order for ten superpost-Panamax gantry cranes alsoincludes an option from HNN foreight similar cranes for the firsttwo berths of its Left Bank con-cession (Deurganckdok).

René Kleiss, Vice-President,Kalmar Ship-to-Shore Cranes, ex-plains why he believes Kalmarcranes won an order for which allmajor crane suppliers bid:

“Simply put, the customerhas put their trust in our technol-ogy and delivery times. This in-dustry has, in recent years, seenenormous delivery-time prob-lems. We have a good reputationfor delivering on time. Customersknow that they can depend onthat, just as they depend on ourtechnology.”

Record-breakinggantry crane order

MSC Home Terminal opts for Kalmar’s reliabletechnology and delivery times

“With regards to this particu-lar project, our ability to meet thedelivery time is essential. Thecustomer is refurbishing its entireexisting terminal, with a quaylength of over 2 km, and our abil-ity to integrate our planning withtheirs, so that the cranes are de-livered at a pace of one permonth starting in November, isimperative.”

Another factor in Kalmar’s favour,according to Mr Kleiss, is thecompany’s decades of experi-ence in providing cranes to majorEuropean operators.

“Local knowledge is, in myopinion, once again becoming avaluable commodity. The global

standardisation of equipment isall very good in theory, but it doesnot necessarily work very well inreality. Each terminal is its ownworld with its own individual re-quirements. Catering to those re-quirements has consequencesthroughout the design and man-ufacturing process.”

A weighty issue

Crane weight has always been anissue, but is becoming more andmore important nowadays. SaysMr Kleiss: “We are confrontedwith customers specs that re-quire us to give evidence andguarantees of the actual craneweight because terminal opera-tors have noticed in the past thatcrane weights are not alwayswhat they should be. If the craneweight is higher than agreed, itcan result in overloading of therail infrastructure and, conse-quently, extremely high quaysidemaintenance costs.”

Weight is particularly impor-tant for MSC Home Terminal, asDelwaidedok is an old dock andoperating loads are limited to 70tonnes/m of rail. Even with thenew landside rail, which will pro-vide a 30 m rail gauge asopposed to the existing 15 m, thisis quite a challenge for such largecranes, particularly as the insideclear width has to be 17.5 mwhile overall width over buffersis limited to 27 m.

Tailoring design to suit needs

The super post-Panamax cranesto be delivered to Home Terminalwill incorporate Kalmar's latestship-to-shore crane technologyand design, successfully intro-duced at Uniport Rotterdam andthe Port of Rouen. Says Mr Kleiss:

“In general, the goal in cranedesign is to achieve an optimumbalance between the stiffnessand the weight of the crane. Youcan increase a crane’s stiffnessby adding more steel in the con-struction process, but that risksthe crane’s natural frequency be-coming slower, which reducesdriver comfort and makes posi-tioning of the spreader more dif-ficult, thus impacting operationalspeed.”

“Neither is it a good solutionto try compensating for extracrane mass by adding morewheels,” says Mr Kleiss. Thisfurther reduces the distancebetween the pivot points of thebogies, meaning wheel loadsincrease when the crane is sub-ject to a side wind. “The fact isthat you do not achieve stiffnessby adding steel but by properdesign. Kalmar achieves anextremely stiff crane structure bythe use of a double box girderand the so-called ‘delta forestay’which provides continuous sup-port over the greatest length ofthe boom.”

Other features in the new de-sign include a rope support sys-

Forest product handling and ship-ping specialist, Interforest BV, hasplaced an order for a Kalmar ship-to-shore (STS) gantry containercrane for its terminal in Rotterdam.The purchase agreement, signed on14 January 2004, incorporates a fullservice and maintenance contractcovering the first five years aftercommissioning. Due to the expan-sion of its terminal, Interforest hasdecided to acquire its first containercrane to shorten ship turnaroundtimes while increasing the numberof ship visits.

Interforest, owned by theSwedish company SCA, will begincontainer stevedoring activitieson 1 October 2004. Up until now,containers have been handled byInterforest using vessels’ owncranes or neighbouring containerterminals, such as ECT HomeTerminal. However, as theoperator is shipping more of itsforest products in containers, thisarrangement is no longereconomical, says Bob de Lange,Managing Director at Interforest:

“This costs time and moneyand for a liner service it is, ofcourse, important to be able tofollow a strict schedule.”

Interforest has been renting6.5 hectares of terminal spacefrom the Rotterdam Port Authori-ty – an area that was recently inuse by ECT Home Terminal. Thetotal area reserved for Interfor-

est’s operations will expand to 18hectares including a 500 m quaycapable of servicing two ships si-multaneously. A recent deal withStar Shipping of Bergen, Norwaywill boost Interforest’s existingannual throughput of 30,000 TEUby an additional 60,000 TEU.

Proactive approach

Mr De Lange explains why hechose Kalmar’s ship-to-shorecrane:

“Kalmar is known to supplyquality and reliable containercranes and has many referencesin Rotterdam, Antwerp andvarious other Europeanterminals.”

“Kalmar’s short delivery time,their proactive approach inoffering financing and acompetitive pricing for a multi-

Pictured from left to right are: Jan Jochmann, Operations Manager,Interforest BV; Cock Angevaren, Project Manager, Kalmar IndustriesBV; René Kleiss, Vice-President, Kalmar Ship-to-Shore Cranesshaking hands with Bob de Lange, Managing Director, Interforestand Peter van der Donk, Kalmar Industries BV (at the back).

year full service contract sealedour decision to co-operate withthem.”

The gantry crane isscheduled for delivery 1 October2004 includes features such as a38 m outreach, a 15.24 mrailspan, a 20 m backreach and a40-tonne loading capacity underthe spreader and up to 60 tonsunder the rotator. Aside fromhandling containers, the machineis also suitable for handlingbreakbulk cargoes.

René Kleiss, Vice-President,Kalmar Ship-to-Shore Cranesconcludes:

“This order proves that afterits recent success in selling superpost-Panamax cranes, Kalmar isalso competitive in the Panamax-size crane sector.”

Five-year serviceoffering swings

InterforestSTS deal

tem, offering a longer rope life-time and allowing the use of nor-mal wire ropes. Says Mr Kleiss:“With moderate trolley speeds ofup to 120-140 m/min a semi-ropeconcept is favourable. Above thatspeed – and we do see a lot ofspecs for speeds over 200 m/min– a full-rope trolley concept ispreferable.”

Existing (auxiliary trolley) andnew (powerchain) technology arecombined in the MSC cranes inorder to improve reliability andreduce maintenance costs. Thefestoon system has been re-placed by powerchain systems,which are advantageous in termsof saving maintenance costs.

Increased capacity

The MSC Home Terminal order al-so reflects the success of Kal-mar’s cooperation with Holland-ia, which produces the steelstructures. Comments Mr Kleiss:

“Through the alliance withHollandia we have the capacityto build more and still achieveon-time delivery. This alliance al-so gives us three or four pre-mises for production purposesand more than 1,200 employees.This year our production capacityaims at growing to over 10 to 15cranes per year. The design andengineering competence stillrests with Kalmar.”

European focus

In the ship-to-shore crane market,Kalmar’s focus is primarily onEurope, although in exceptionalcases the company may alsowork with selected customerselsewhere in the world. “There isso much work to be done in Eu-rope and, for the next few years,that’s the market that offers thebest prospects for Kalmar whenit comes to STS cranes,” saysMr Kleiss.

Cranes themselves are alsodeveloping at a fast pace, he ex-plains: “We are working on biggerdimensions – for example, craneswith an outreach capable of serv-ing 24-wide container vessels anda hoisting height greater than 40metres. Tandem lift (handling two40 ft containers simultaneously) isalso under development. An 80-tonne capacity on the hoistingropes is now standard in the ma-jority of cranes. 120 tonnes will bethe next step, so why not 140 inthe future?”

The main parameters for Kalmar’s cranes for MSC are:

Safe working load on the ropes / under spreader 80/65 tonnes

Outreach 56 metres

Railspan 30 metres

Backreach 25 metres

Hoisting height 35 metres

Hoisting depth 21 metres

Hoisting speed rated load / empty spreader 90/180 metres/minute

Trolley travelling speed 240 metres/minute

Gantry travelling speed 45 metres/minute

MSC and HNN inThe MSC order for ten superpost-Panamax gantry cranes willboost capacity for Hesse-NoordNatie (HNN), which was acquiredby PSA Corporation Ltd in 2002and handled 4.3 m TEU in thatyear. The PSA group has 13 ter-minal locations in nine countriesaround the world, includingBelgium, Brunei, China, India,Italy, Korea, Portugal, Yemen andSingapore. Between them theyhandled 24.5 m TEU in 2002.

HNN’s partner in Home Ter-minal Antwerp, MediterraneanShipping Company (MSC), is oneof the largest global containershipping lines. Founded in 1970and based in Geneva, MSC oper-ates a fleet of more than 200vessels with a total capacity ofover 500,000 TEU.

Continued from page 1

10 11

The two container handlingcranes ‘901’ and ‘902’ have beenoperational at the port for severalmonths. Crane 901 was officiallyinaugurated in October 2002 withthe CMA CGM vessel Fort Louis,while Crane 902 made it debutwith the Rejane Delmas ship inNovember last year.

Eric Leblond, Ingenieur, Ser-vice Technique has been with thePort of Rouen for over 27 years.He explained the reasoning be-hind the port’s decision to awardthe contact for the two ship-to-shore cranes to Kalmar indus-tries.

Contracts on the basis of thetechnical capability

“Before, contracts were awardedby the Port of Rouen based solelyon price and delivery times. Thishas now changed. We nowaward contracts on the basis ofthe technical capability of thecrane, the price and the adher-ence to a stipulated deliverytime.

In the past we have found alot of manufacturers agreed toour delivery schedules at the out-set of a bid, but then failed to de-liver on time, incurring both pen-alties for themselves andproblems for us. This was not thecase with Kalmar. Keeping thework on schedule was just as im-portant to them as it was to us. Infact,” laughed Leblond, “Normallythe Port of Rouen is usually theones asking the supplier for con-firmation of engineering details.This was the first time however,we found a supplier asking us, forthem!”

Winningcustomers

overwith the personal touch

The Port de Rouen Vallee de Seine has endorsed theacquisition of its two new ship-to-shore cranes fromKalmar, with a firm thumbs up.

Face-to-face involvement

Kalmar’s flexibility and face-to-face involvement was also a cru-cial element for the Port ofRouen. “Kalmar fabricates every-thing at its factories from incep-tion to completion which wasvery important for us,” explainedLeblond.

“The project managementstaff were both receptive and ac-commodating with our requests,even to the point of ensuring allthe technical and operationalmanuals were translated inFrench. We would talk about pos-sible challenges and together,find appropriate solutions. In thebeginning we decided to have ameeting every month, betweenthe project managers from Kal-mar and the Port of Rouen. Afterthe erection of the cranes, thefrequency of these meetingswere changed to a weekly basis.These were all person-to-person,which meant that our discus-sions and decisions were madejointly.”

The high level of stiffness ofthe crane, along with its smoothboom hinge transition point en-sures smooth operation.

“Our drivers are very happywith the machines,” said Leb-lond. The crane cabs are spa-cious, comfortable andergonomic – a much needed ne-cessity on a shift of 6-8 hours.”

Port of Rouen

Historically, the Port of Rouenwas famous for being the largestcommercial port in France. Itsclose proximity to Paris made it

the envy of its time. Today the 80km port still plays a vital part intraffic for Paris as well as riverroutes, and as such, it needscranes that are both reliable andefficient.

The Paris-Rouen-Le Havreport complex ranks first amongFrench ports for general cargotraffic and is in third place in Eu-rope as a whole in terms of totaltonnage, all traffic taken together.It has approximately 35 millionconsumers within a range of250 km. Directly connected bythe Seine and enjoying a favour-able geographical location, Paris,Rouen and Le Havre are ideallyplaced for ships on Channel andNorth Sea routes as well as pro-viding easy access to the hinter-land.

In order to achieve these highthroughputs of container traffic,driver comfort is a paramountfactor.

Eric LeBlond was in no hesitation when asked if Kalmarwould be the preferred choice in the future. “From myexperience to date, I can see us working together onfuture projects.”

The Kalmar ship-to-shore cranes have railspan of 27 m, a maximum trolley trav-elling speed of 150 m/min and a maximum gantry travelling speed of 30 m/min.The cranes are AC frequency controlled and have a Schneider electrical installa-tion in accordance with the Port of Rouen’s requirements, as are its colours,which represents the surrounding area; green for the forest, white for air andblue for the water. With a lifting capacity of 55 tonnes under the spreader, andan outreach of 39 m, the cranes are able to service Panamax size vessels.

Recently, PeinemannKalmar in the Netherlandscelebrated a ten-yearcollaboration with RailService Centre (RSC), theprincipal rail terminaloperator in the Port ofRotterdam.

To mark the occasion, Peine-mann Kalmar organised a partywhere Ad Kornet, ManagingDirector of Peinemann Kalmarpresented Cor Hoenders,Managing Director, RSC with aspecially designed birthday cakewhile the entire RSC workforce,135 people in all, received Peine-mann Kalmar jackets.

Also presented to RSC at theparty were the keys to the last offour Kalmar ContChamp DRFreachstackers which will assist inmeeting increased demand forcontainer and swapbody han-dling at the terminal.

Peinemannbakes a cake for RSC

A longterm relationship

RSC has been in business for tenyears and started operations us-ing two Kalmar reachstackers.These were supplied by Peine-mann on a full service rentalbasis. At that time, RSC had thecapability to handle approximate-ly 100,000 containers per annum.

Today, RSC is handling300,000 containers per annum, atask which requires five reach-stackers, and the company is an-ticipating continued growth to-wards 400,000 to 450,000containers per annum. To ensurethat its handling capabilities canmeet peak demand require-

ments, it hasopted toincrease itsreachstackerfleet to six, agoal achievedwith the deliv-ery of thislatest DRFmachine.

Highutilisation

The four newDRF machinesare replacingthree olderContChamps.Ad Kornet ex-plains that RSC

works its machines very hard,regularly hitting 4,500 hours perannum, and consequently Peine-mann Kalmar is replacing themroughly every four years.

“Even at the beginning, RSCused to achieve around 3,000

hours per annum. In such an in-tensive environment, we preferto have new machines – the con-tainer block train won’t wait ifRSC has breakdowns – and wearrange for the older machines tobe refurbished and either rentedto customers with less punishingrequirements or sold.”

Remko Vegter, Equipment &Facility Manager, admits to hav-ing looked at other reachstackersupplies before committing tothe new DRFs:

“We were able to reassureourselves that our PeinemannKalmar deal is the best solutionfor us. It’s tailor-made to meetour needs and has proven itselfover ten years.”

“The two Peinemann Kalmarengineers based at our terminalare regarded as part of our team. They work five days a week,maintaining the reachstackers aswell as our terminal tractors,while Peinemann Kalmar oper-ates a 24 hours a day, seven daysa week call out service that cov-ers us for unscheduled down-time.”

With the likely advent of theLKW Maut German road tollingscheme sometime later this yearand with the enlargement of theEU to 25 countries, RSC is alreadygearing itself up for more growth.Although the limit of the currentfacility is close to capacity, thereis land available for expansionthat the company is sure it willneed.

More information:René Kleiss

Tel +31 102946702Fax +31 102946778

rene.kleiss@kalmarind.com

12

Sections for previous Airbusplanes were moved by road or inthe dedicated Airbus A300-600STBeluga transport aircraft. Buteven the cavernous hold of thehuge, heavy-lift Beluga, speciallyderived from the Airbus A300 toconvey aircraft parts from plantto plant, is unable to transportthe extra large components mak-ing up the A380. After all, the air-craft, a third bigger than the larg-est Boeing has a 14,800 km-range and the wing alone is 36metres long and 12 metres wide– the largest ever designed andbuilt for a commercial aircraft.

Airbus contemplated buildinga “maxi-Beluga” based on the air-fame of its largest aircraft, or anairship. But the enormous devel-opment and production costswere judged to be prohibitive. So,vital as it is, the present five-trongBeluga fleet is only one part ofthe logistics solution in transport-ing the parts making up the dou-ble-decker jet from fourEuropean locations for finalassembly.

By mid-January this year, thenew Airbus had attracted 129firm commitments comprising112 passenger airliners and17 freighter versions of the A380from 11 customers. Clientsinclude Emirates with 43 orders,Lufthansa (15) and Qantas (12).Launch customer Singapore Air-lines, Air France, Fedex and leas-ing company ILFC have ordered10 each and Virgin Atlantic six.Several other airlines haveexpressed interest. So, to meetthe A380 challenge, the Toulouse-based, 80%-20% subsidiary ofEADS and the UK’s BAE Systems,Airbus has gone multimodal.

Transport chain

For the first time in its history, itis adding maritime transport,river barges, harbour cargo load-ers and outsized road convoys toits logistics system. And thetransport chain to move sectionsof the A380 – some of which arethe biggest ever manufacturedfor an aircraft – from variousplants in Europe for assembly atAirbus’s main site in Toulouse willsoon be completed.

Manufacture of the A380 isalready underway and the site-to-site transport of some compo-nents has already started. LastJuly, Tony Blair, the British primeminister, opened a new 500 mil-lion euros, 83,500 sq. metreextension to Airbus’s facility atBroughton, north Wales whichproduces the A380’s wings. Andin mid-September, the Belugadelivered the aircraft’s first wingcomponent from EADS MilitaryAircraft’s plant in Augsberg,Germany to Broughton.

New logistics plan

So far, so good. But then the newlogistics plan comes into playwith Airbus’s plan to ship thelargest parts of the mega aircraftby sea from manufacturing sitesin the U.K., Germany, Spain andFrance to Pauillac, near

Bordeaux, France. A joint ventureof leading French shipowner anddry bulk specialist Louis DreyfusArmateurs (LDA) and Norway'sLeif Höegh & Co ASA beat someforty other candidates to securethe contract for the maritimetransport of the A380’s compo-nents from various manufactur-ing plants in Europe to dedicatedport facilities at Paulliac.

On the strength of a 20-yeartime charter plus two five-yearoptions, the joint venture of LDA’ssubsidiary FRET S.A. and LeifHöeg’s French subsidiaryCETAM, has ordered a dedicatedsingle-deck, roll-on roll-off vesselfrom China's Jinlan shipyard,near Shanghai at a rumouredcost of $22.25 million. From out-side, the 5,200 dwt, 154 metre-long, 24-metre wide vessel willlook very much like a conven-tional car-carrier. But inside it willbe almost hollow with an11-metre high load space.

The ship, due for completionduring the first quarter of 2004,will be managed by LDA, fly theFrench flag and employ two ded-icated 16-strong crews. Theagreement with Airbus includesan optional second vessel fordelivery in 2007.

The so-far un-named vesselwill collect the A380’s wings fromBroughton via the port ofMostyn, north Wales, its fore andaft sections of the fuselage fromHamburg/Finkenwerder, the tailsection from Peurto Real, nearCadiz, Spain and the cockpit andcentral fuselage from SaintNazaire, western France. Theywill then be transported toPauillac, until now a little-usedgateway at the estuary of theRiver Gironde north of Bordeaux.

Ro-ro barges

Once at Pauillac, the huge com-ponents will be transferred ontoa 150 m-long, 35 m-wide floatingdock to continue their 12-hourjourney down-river to Toulouseby special 75-metre long, 13.8 mwide state-of-the-art barge, cur-rently being completed beingbuilt at the De Hoop shipyard atHeusden, in the Netherlands.They will then be transporteddown the River Garonne beforebeing transferred onto six-truckroad convoys for the 240 kmroad journey to Airbus’s assem-bly plant at Blagnac, nearToulouse.

The river section of the A380logistics system, operated byBordeaux-based shipowner andtanker operator Socatra, will con-sist in a 12-hour trip down a96 km stretch of the RiversGironde and Garonne to Langonharbour where a dedicated75 m-long, 15.5 m-wide dock issoon to be completed.

The specially designed ro-robarges will use a variable ballastsystem and the GPS navigationaid enabling them to pass underbridges, even during springtimefloods.

The last part of the journey

The last section of the A380’sjourney – the 240 km road linkbetween Langon and Airbus’sfinal assembly plant at the Aéro-constellation business parknorth-east of Toulouse-Blagnacairport – was the subject of afiercely fought protest by localresidents, environmental organi-sations and left-wing politicalparties. “Airbus A380, yes! – moretrucks No!”, was the slogan of theSave our Valley organisationagainst plans to widen the roadsbetween to Toulouse which theyfeared would increase noise, pol-lution and the way of life of thetwo peaceful villages ofSégoufielle and Mondonville.The protesters said they did notoppose the A380 but were con-cerned that, in addition to thegiant trucks conveying parts ofthe new jumbo to Toulouse, theplanned widened highway wouldalso attract about half the 80,000vehicles that daily use nearbyMotorway 124. From April 2004,following a period of consultationwith the public concerned by theprojected route, convoys madeup of six 600 hp tractor/trailorswith multi-steering capability,

height adjustment and state-of-the-art guidance systems willtransport A380 components onthe last leg of their journey.

The trailors, operated byFrench heavylift haulage special-ist Transports Capelle, will be upto 14 metres high, eight metreswide and 50 metres long. Theywill only travel between 10 pmand 6 am at 10-20 kph, typicallytaking three nights to cover theroute and parking in speciallyconceived dedicated parkingbays when not moving.

Planning the itinerary in-cludes updating 165 km of exist-ing roads, building 10 km of newhighway and five diversionaryroutes to avoid built-up areas.Near Blagnac, where the opposi-tion to the original route wasmost intense, 8 km of specialroad is to be reserved for theconvoy. Airbus is to contributemore than half the total cost ofmodifying road systems in south-west France to accommodatethe specially designed transport-ers carrying sections of the A380.The government and regionalauthorities fork up the rest.

Jeff Apter

First sections of the aircraft will arrive in Toulouse inspring this year. First flight is early 2005, and deliveriesto airlines begin in 2006.

The A380 programme, launchedin December 2000, representsthe culmination of an extensivepeace time engineering effort inhistory. As the most spacious,advanced and efficient aircraftever conceived, the A380 willprovide a technology platformfrom which all future aircraft pro-grammes will evolve.

The definition phase of thefirst aircraft was essentially com-plete by the end of 2002. Sub-assembly of parts for the A380 isnow underway at Airbus manu-facturing units across the worldand delivery to the final assemblyline in Toulouse, France, is sched-uled to take place in early 2004.

The fully integrated A380 pro-gramme, implemented company-wide, currently involves morethan 6,000 people, co-located atthe various Airbus sites acrossthe world.

Transport of the aircraft sec-tions to the final assembly line inToulouse includes a mix of sea,river and road transport. The fulltransport itinerary has been un-dergoing tests and trials, whichhave so far proved successful,and is scheduled for completionby spring 2004 ready to transportthe first of the major sections ofthe A380.

Artist's impression of the Airbus A380

A photo from the trials done late last year. The “space frame” on the truck onthe left represents the left and right wings (each wing will travel on a separateroad truck, but the space frame simulates the contours of both on the samevehicle). The test was aimed at paving the way for the transport of the realsections, by highlighting any interference with buildings, trees, overheadpowerlines etc.

A380s u p e r j u m b o

13

Moving the monster

AirbusAirbus A380 will be the world’s largestpassenger airliner. In order to deliveressential components – notably thewing and fuselage sections – of the 555-800 passenger aircraft to Toulouse,south-west France, for final assembly,Airbus has conceived a totally new logis-tics system. The company’s biggest -

conundrum was how to transport thesecomponents, given that its existing sys-tems were not geared up to handle theaircraft’s unprecedented dimensions.

Kalmar deliveries to Airbus includeone DCD 120-12 forklift truck, used forthe transportation of bulky componentssuch as the aircraft engines, and one

The building in which the Airbus A380 will be assembled.The main international airport of Toulouse is in the background.

TRX 182 terminal tractor. This terminaltractor is to be used for the transporta-tion over a tailor-made roro ramp of spe-cial containers measuring 8 m high x 8 mwide x 12 m long and containing seg-ments of the A380 fuselage.

1514

More information:Andreas SchumacherTel +49 40 547 305 30Fax +49 40 547 305 39

andreas.schumacher@kalmarind.com

Fresh Express, based in Salinas, California is one of themajor players in the billion-dollar fresh foods industry.Fresh Express’ success is dependent on their ability toensure their products are fresh and tasty when they hitthe mouths of the North American consumers.

Keepingit fresh!

To do this, Fresh Express oper-ates as efficient an operation aspossible to deliver their high-quality fresh foods to major re-tailers and food service business-es throughout North America.

With the recent purchase oftwo Kalmar DCE240 forklifts,Fresh Express has now includedKalmar in their processing chainthat is immensely importantwhen dealing with fresh produce.States John Bohn, Director ofCooling, “Any failure in our pro-cess directly effects quality andour forklifts are a major compo-nent of the processing chain.”

As Fresh Express holds thelargest market share in NorthAmerica for bagged salad prod-ucts they are moving quite anamount of produce each day, to-taling as much as 12-15 millionpounds per week. “Our industrydictates that we operate basicallyyear-round, 363 days a year withtwo shifts a day,” states Mr. Bohn. With such a demanding sched-ule, Fresh Express requires high-quality machines that will oper-ate up to 3500-4000 hours peryear.

Fresh Express had three ma-jor purchase components whendeciding which machines to pur-chase. Excellent technical train-ing for the Fresh Express staff, acommitment to parts availability,and the reliability of the machinewere those three purchase com-ponents.

“We cannot afford downtimeon our machines, and Kalmar dida great job of meeting our re-quirements which all contributeto the important uptime factor ofthe machine” states Mr. Bohn.Local Kalmar dealer, AltaLift, ofSelma, California introduced Mr.Bohn to the Kalmar line of prod-ucts. “We have had a firm rela-tionship with AltaLift for yearsand their strong belief in the Kal-mar product and the support thatcomes with it played a major rolein our decision” states Mr. Bohn.

The move to Kalmar also rep-resents a major jump forward inthe type of machines that aretypically used in the fresh foodsindustry. Fresh Express had beenused to machines that weremore of the workhorse variety,but with not much in the way of

More information:Randy Dennis

Tel +1 785 229 6378Fax +1 785 242 8573

randy.dennis@kalmarind.com

ergonomics or engineering.States Mr. Bohn, “With our ag-gressive work schedule we nowhave drivers who spend up to tenhours a day in their forklift, andproviding a high level of ergo-nomics and comfort to them wasalso something we were lookingfor. The enclosed Kalmar cab withair conditioning, nice instrumen-tation, and well-placed hydrauliccontrols has been well receivedby our operators.”

The teamwork between bothAltaLift and Kalmar has also con-tributed to the success at FreshExpress. “Lyn Sheppard andTommy Harmon from AltaLifthave worked extremely hard attaking care of us, and Kalmar hasdone everything they committedto,” states Mr. Bohn.

Hassle-free handlingof high-value kit

In mid-2003, Lufthansa Technik Logistik GmbH (LTL) inFrankfurt was faced with the task of acquiring a new,high-performance forklift truck for handling andtransporting large, heavy loads. Kalmar dealerresponsible for the area, NHK, has developed a closerelationship with LTL over the past 20 years and was onhand to help out.

Lufthansa Technik AG is regardedas the world market leader whenit comes to the maintenance, re-pair and overhaul (MRO) of com-mercial aircraft. The Hamburg-headquartered concern employsa staff of 12,500 worldwide andhas numerous subsidiaries suchas Lufthansa Technik LogistikGmbH (LTL).

This special service providerseamlessly supplies a worldwidefleet of more than 900 aircraftwith spare parts of every kind.The make-up of the componentsis extremely complex, rangingfrom the simple washer, worth nomore than a couple of eurocents,through to the GE-90 thrust unitfor the Boeing 777, which isworth more than $15 million.

Taking a load off

In mid-2003, LTL in Frankfurtneeded a new, high-performanceforklift truck for handling andtransporting large, heavy loads.Thankfully, the Kalmar dealer re-

sponsible for the area – NHK inBensheim/Bergstrasse, just 50km away – was on hand to helpand consequently LTL’s 12-tonnerKalmar forklift, which had been inservice for many years, was trad-ed in for a 16-tonne machinefrom the current DCE series.

“Our loads are constantlyincreasing in size and we have tomove not only equipment worthof millions of euros but alsotransport them more and moreoften over longer distances”,explains Lutz Walter, Area man-ager for stock and service.

Optimum visibility

LTL’s handling specifications werefor a 12-tonne ultimate load anda 2,000 mm load centre. This isno problem for the heavy-dutytruck, which has unmistakablecontouring and is equipped witha duplex lift mast. It was this lat-ter feature in particular thatclinched the purchase, togetherwith the truck’s 180-degree re-volving seat. LTL often has to shiftgiant crates containing powerunit panelling over fairly signifi-cant distances to the adjacentLufthansa shipyard or into the AirCargo area. In this case, the spa-cious Spirit-Delta cab with itsrevolving seat is exactly the rightsolution because at the press ofa button the whole operatinggear, complete with pedals, ishydraulically swivelled through180 degrees, affording the drivera perfect view of the roadwayacross the sloped engine cowl-ing.

Two telescoping warninglights on the counterweight alertthe driver to spaces throughwhich he can fit. This feature isextremely important as it allowsthe driver to undertake long-haulmovements without needingsomeone to talk him through theprocedure. The acquisition of agoose-neck trailer system couldalso be a sensible idea for han-dling future loads of this kind inthe future. The seat of the goose-neck is engaged by the forks, thetrailer is raised, and with the driv-er’s seat in the rotated position,the long-haul transportation be-gins – much like an articulatedtrain.

Smooth operator

For handling goods worth mil-lions of euros, the Kalmar dealerrecommended equipping thetruck’s lifting cylinder with a hy-draulic accumulator, therebyavoiding jerky load movements.

The highly successful DCE se-ries, more than 50 units of whichare in operation in Germany

alone, is powered by Volvo en-gines. The engines have either aClark or Dana powershift set,flange-mounted, and each fea-turing three forward and threereverse gears. For DCE modelsup to an ultimate load of 16tonnes, electronically controlledautomatic gears are also avail-able.

Trusty workhorses

LTL is a loyal and longstandingKalmar customer. The company’slogistics division is currently de-ploying a Kalmar 6-tonne electri-cal forklift in its warehouses.These warehouses contain air-craft components worth a totalvalue of some 300 million euro,which are packaged, commis-sioned and dispatched all overthe world.

Mr Lutz explains that ma-chine availability and reliabilityare extremely important to LTL asit runs a three-shifts, year-roundoperation. “Whenever an aircraftsomewhere in the world suffersan unforeseen thrust unit mal-function, we count on speed andreliability to deliver a thrust unitand the assembly gear to astandby freighter. Our Kalmartrucks have not once let usdown.”

Long-haul conveyance of a well-packaged thrustunit panel is no problem, thanks to the DCE’s180-degree swivelling seat and special2,500 mm forks. The smart machine allows thedriver to undertake transportation without theneed for an extra person directing him.

1716

Kumport goes from strength to strength

More information:Keijo Parviainen

Tel +358 3265 8111Fax +358 3 265 8201

keijo.parviainen@kalmarind.com

Continued from page 1

Kumport has worked hard to pro-gressively improve its facilitiessince it first opened its doors forbusiness in 1994. Following theestablishment of container han-dling operations, the port hasevolved into a multi-purposehandling facility, looking afterboth general cargo and contain-ers.

When GeneralManager,Cüneyd Acar,first received in-structions tostart gearing theport up to han-dle containers,he had one goalin mind: to makeKumport thenumber oneport in Turkey.Investment inequipment andfacility upgrades

together with the implementa-tion of modern information sys-tems have certainly proved fruit-ful. Kumport has becomeTurkey’s largest private port, withtraffic growing even in times ofeconomic crisis, such as a coupleof years ago. Explains Mr Acar:

“We are the number one ter-minal in Turkey with modern,state-of-the-art handling equip-ment and yard management andinformation systems. Because ofour excellent service levels wehave won customers from otherterminals and are proud to saythat almost all major global carri-ers, such as Maersk and P&ONedlloyd, call our port today.”

Reaching the millions

Kumport’s inauguration into thecontainer business was a modestaffair, with the terminal handlingno more than 5,000 TEU in its firstyear of operations. However, theamount of investment the man-agement was willing to committo its container operations andthe pace of development at theterminal rapidly attracted busi-ness. As a result, Kumport han-dled 440,000 TEU last year, aswell as 415,000 tonnes of generalcargo. This represented a sub-stantial growth over 2002’sthroughput figures, which stoodat 280,000 TEU and 392,000tonnes respectively. Mr Acar out-lines one of the reasons behindthat growth, as well as the port’sexpansion plans for the future:

“A lot of general cargo busi-ness has moved to Kumport late-ly because the terminal has along pier and a 13-meter draft.Moreover, in north Marmara weone of the most important portcapable of handling roro ves-sels,” he says.

“In terms of containers, thecurrent facility is now operatingclose to maximum. As such, weplan to expand the berth andstorage areas and increase ourfleet of equipment to give us anultimate capacity of one millionTEU. We are currently reclaimingland from the sea between piers2 and 3 to create additional con-tainer storage facilities and wehave also started to expand ourlandside area for stacking emptycontainers.”

Targeting transhipmenttraffic

Kumport lies on the European sideof Istanbul, 22 sea miles west ofthe entrance to the Bosphorus,and sits directly on the MarmaraSea, without the encumbrance ofan approach channel. Its locationmakes it ideal for serving theNorthern Marmara region, Tur-key’s most important commercialand industrial area.

The Marmara region has beenearmarked by the government fordevelopment as the primary tran-shipment centre for the Black Sea.“There is great potential for in-creasing the amount of tranship-ment cargo handled at Kumport,”says Mr Acar. “A lot of carriershave recognised that for cargobound for the Black Sea region,the best transhipment point is inMarmara. Within a year we’ll seethis side of our business develop-ing.”

Turkey is surrounded by seaand, according to Mr Acar, thegovernment is trying to take ad-vantage of this by fostering thedevelopment of coastal shippingservices.

“At the moment, distribution ofcargo into Turkey’s interior reliesheavily on road transportation,due to the lack of a strong rail net-work and a shortage of coastalshipping services. We haven’t hada single meter of rail built sincethe 1940s,” he says. “However, it isimperative that traffic is moved offthe roads now, due to unaccept-able levels of congestion, so thegovernment is initially looking atways to influence growth in thecoastal shipping sector. One of theinitiatives it has come up with is to

offer tax free fuel for domesticshipping services. This will be an-other growth area for Kumportand we are already preparing tohandle more domestic shipping.”

Intelligence in action

Container handling services atKumport are handled by threeKalmar RTGs with the Smartrail®autosteering and container posi-tion verification system. They are7+1 wide and can stack contain-ers 1 over 5 high. Kumport re-cently placed an order for afourth Kalmar RTG which will beoperated on a 10,000m2 site tobe reclaimed from the sea.

According to Mr Acar, the de-cision to buy RTGs with the latesttechnological features has beenkey to Kumport’s success in at-tracting new business and themachines will continue to forman integral part of the port’s de-velopment. He has been particu-larly impressed with the RTGs’Smartrail system:

“We decided to fit the RTGswith Smartrail to make the workas simple as possible for the ma-chine operators. It allows them toconcentrate on handling.

“Our operators are really hap-py with the automatic gantrysteering system and feel verycomfortable with it. And becausethe operators do not need toworry about steering, they candrive the machine at full speed,which makes handling muchmore efficient.“

“Thanks to Smartrail, we canoffer our customers competitivevessel turnaround times. It en-ables us to locate a containerquickly and as soon as a contain-

There are, today, morethan 100 RTG unitsaround the globeoperating successfullywith Kalmar’sSmartrail® technology.Kalmar’s patented Smartrail autosteering technology is based on adifferential global positioning system (DGPS), providing accurateoperations under even the most adverse weather conditions. It isalso practically service free since there are no buried wires,transponders or painted lines to be maintained.

Utilising DGPS technology, Smartrail steers the RTG along‘invisible’ tracks, relieving the driver of the need to steer and allowinghim to travel at maximum speed between lifts and to concentratefully on picking up and setting down containers.

Smartrail includes a container position verification systemmeaning that each time the spreader’s twistlocks are activated, theyard management system is automatically updated and the newposition of the container is recorded. This means less time is spentlooking for lost or misplaced containers.

Turkish partnership Kalmar’s Turkish dealer, ToyotaIstif Makineleri A.S, was original-ly established in 1988 under thename IGM. Its co-operation withKalmar started in 1998 with anorder for 35 Contchamp reach-stackers for Turkey Railways. Thecompany is also the Turkish rep-resentative and distributor forother well-known global brandsin the materials handling indus-try, for example, the trailer man-ufacturer, Buiscar-Holland, andToyota Industrial Equipment.

According to Toyota IstifMakineleri’s General Manager,Ender Erkul, Kalmar is perceivedin Turkey as a high-quality equip-

Ender Erkul, General Manager of Toyota Istif Makineleri, and his assistantMeltem Aydogus.

er is lifted onto or off a chassis,or to or from a vessel, its yard lo-cation is automatically updatedin the terminal control system,providing us with a real-time ter-minal inventory.” The RTG operation also bene-fits from the Kalmar-developedremote crane monitoring system(RCMS). RCMS enables the re-mote monitoring of the machinesby a single operator in either theterminal control room or Kal-mar’s customer support depart-ment.

“We have a direct linethrough to Kalmar specialists inTampere factory, who give us ex-cellent support,” says Mr Acar.

Alongside the RTGs, the portuses four Kalmar TTX-182LHD,4x2 terminal tractors transport-ing containers between thequayside and the containerstack.

“In selecting the best contain-er handling method for the port,

we had to take into account theterminal layout,” explains MrAcar. “This presented us with anumber of restrictions due to theamount of roads, sharp curvesand surface inclinations. Becauseof this, terminal tractors werefound to provide the best meth-od of transporting containers inthe terminal area. Kalmar termi-nal tractors have proved them-selves to be well suited to the jobsince they have enough tractivepower for heavy loads, evenwhen driving uphill.”

Maintenance of Kumport’sequipment is provided by Kal-mar’s local dealer, Toyota IstifMakineleri, which provides a lim-ited amount of stock.

ment manufacturer with strongafter sales support. He reportsthat existing Turkish users ofKalmar equipment are extremelysatisfied with their machines’performance and quality, as wellas Kalmar’s after-sales serviceand spare parts support.“Once a client has tried a Kalmarmachine, they usually buy Kalmaragain,” he explains.

In addition to the RTGs andterminal tractors delivered toKumport, recent orders for Kal-mar equipment in Turkey includeseveral reachstackers and forklifttrucks for a variety of companies.

Since it first started handlingcontainerised cargo in 2000, Kumporthas quickly elevated itself into thepremier league of Turkish ports interms of technological know-how,operational standards and equipment.

Its trio of state-of-the-art KalmarRTGs – all featuring the Smartrail®

autosteering and container positionverification system and the remotecrane monitoring system (RCMS) – issoon to become a quartet, with a fourthKalmar RTG beginning operations in anew reclaimed expansion area inOctober 2004.

Continued from page 1

18 19

Scandic Terminal in Esbjerg is the largest RoRo terminalin Denmark, with nine arrivals of DFDS vessels fromEngland every week. More than 1.5 million tons of cargoare handled every year, split between approximately100,000 trailers and 15,000 containers and smallervolumes of other cargoes. There are currently 11 newKalmar terminal tractors operating in the terminal(which has an area of 100,000 m2) helping to achieve theefficient handling of cargo.

Over the past two years ScandicTerminal has undergone a dramat-ic transformation in order to opti-mise its handling of incoming andoutgoing cargo. The main focushas been the loading and unload-ing of DFDS Tor Lines’ two RoRovessels Tor Britannia and Tor Swe-cia, which operate out of Imming-ham in the UK. One of the vesselsdocks at Esbjerg every day except

More information:Timo Matikainen

Tel +358 3 265 8111Fax +358 3 265 8223

timo.matikainen@kalmarind.com

for Mondays. In addition to this,the RoPax vessel Dana Syrenaruns between Harwich andEsbjerg, transporting cargo andpassengers, three times a week.

“We concentrate all our ef-forts on our core business, thefast and efficient loading and un-loading of vessels”, says TerminalManager Hans Vejs-Petersen.“Using ten machines and a teamof 25 men, including drivers, wecan unload and load the ship inunder six hours”.

Efficient terminalmanagement

Over the past few years the ter-minal has been converted so as

to offer large self-containedstands for trailers, containers, ve-hicles and other cargo directlyalongside the vessels. In additionto this, other stands are located inthe vicinity. All the stands are ar-ranged in numbered rows.

When a road truck with a trail-er comes into the terminal, thedriver checks in and is assigned astand, for example in ”Line 30”.The trailer is booked into the DFDSterminal management system andwhen it is time to unload, a termi-nal tractor collects the trailer. Thedriver enters the ID number of thetrailer and drives onboard, disen-gages the trailer and enters its lo-cation on his computer terminal inthe cab. The information is thentransmitted to the DFDS terminalwhere unloading will be per-formed on the other side of theNorth Sea.

“The terminal managementsystem is the most important toolwe have to use to manage all thecargo in a rational way,” explainsHans Vejs-Petersen. “Over 115,000trailers and containers passthrough here every year. We are al-so seeing a steady increase in thevolume of cargo.” Previously therewas a direct rail line to the termi-nal. Since the conversion, cargoentering or leaving Esbjerg is han-dled by railway on an externaltransfer terminal. This is where theScandic Terminal’s tractors load orunload the cargo.

Unload the ship!

Ten terminal tractors and a further15 people, in addition to the driv-ers, are needed to load and unloada RoRo ship. The work is plannedusing the DFDS terminal manage-ment system. Every driver is ableto see on the computer screen inthe terminal tractors which con-tainers and trailers are to be usedand where they are located. Thedriver enters what has been col-lected and where the cargo hasbeen placed. This requires a lot ofdiscipline but the system is nowworking very well.

Unloading is a period of fever-ish activity. The terminal tractorsdrive onboard the ship to the up-per and lower decks, collect thecargo and then disembark. Smallturning circles, good all-roundview and strength and tractive ef-fort are required to negotiate theinclined ramps. It is here that theKalmar terminal tractors (modelTRL 182) really come into their

Terminal tractorstriumphin Esbjerg

own. The machines are very pop-ular with the drivers, who havean excellent view from the caband can easily manoeuvre theirmachines in the tight spaces.

“When the time came to or-der new terminal tractors we al-so tested machines from othermanufacturers. But when wethen reconsidered the overallbenefits of the Kalmar machinethe drivers couldn’t really seethemselves driving any other ma-chine, ”says Hans Vejs-Petersen.“We have used the same makesince the mid 1980s and current-ly have 19 Kalmar terminal trac-tors. They are able to handle thestresses and strains involved inthe intensive work at Scandic Ter-minal and are truly reliable.”

Their high accessibility andability to deal with intensive car-go management and the muchappreciated driver environmentprovide yet another distinct ad-vantage for Kalmar. Eleven newKalmar TRL 182 terminal tractorsare now in use at the DFDS termi-nal in Esbjerg. The machines areleased by Kalmar who, togetherwith the Danish dealer Arne Holst& Co, is responsible for theirmaintenance.

Hydraulic SAT trestles lock

Previously the lashing down ofloaded cargo required a high de-gree of manual work. This hasbeen radically reduced by the in-troduction of the new SAT tres-tles, which hydraulically lock thetrailers onto the deck of the ship.The new Kalmar TRL 182 low rid-er is countersunk to allow roomfor the loading trestle betweenthe terminal tractor and the trail-er. The loading trestle is connect-ed to the hydraulic system of theterminal tractor in order to closeand open the “twist lock” type oflocking mechanism.

“Three of our new KalmarTRL182s have also beenequipped to operate translifters,which are used for containersplaced side by side in specialcassettes onboard the ship, ex-plains Hans Vejs-Petersen. Ap-proximately 25 containers percrossing are handled.”The translifters are driven in un-der the containers so that theycan be driven onboard. The con-tainers are placed tightly side byside and only require lashingdown in severe weather condi-tions.

“We’ve generally worked verywell together, even though thereis always room for improve-ment,” says HMT’s terminal chiefPer-Olof Nyström.

According to Mr Nyström,quality and fast delivery capabili-ties played a key role in the com-pany’s decision to choose Kalmaras its equipment supplier. “Theavailability of spare parts is alsovery good.”

Addressing both negativesand positives

Regular meetings between Kal-mar and HMT at which both thegood and the bad elements ofthe partnership are frankly dis-cussed have strengthened theco-operation between the twocompanies. Mr Nyström praisesKalmar for taking immediate ac-tion when required, recognisingKalmar’s commitment to lookinginto a problem and making thenecessary improvements.

“I rate good service very high-ly when it comes to an equip-ment supplier. It doesn’t matterhow good the product is if youdon’t get the service you need. Acompany might have an excel-lent product, but it can still losethe deal due to poor co-operation.”

Mr Nyström notes the impor-tance of strong after-sales ser-vice in light of the fact that spareparts are needed intermittently.Indeed, terminal machinery re-quires constant attention. Prob-lems always arise, and a goodsupplier is one that is there toprovide advice when it is needed.

Mr Nyström says he is satis-fied with Kalmar’s service andcomments that maintenance hasrun smoothly even though therehave been delays at times. Pro-

2120

More information:Markku Kaivonen

Tel +358 3 265 8221Fax +358 3 265 8299

markku.kaivonen@kalmarind.com

Good servicebreeds close co-operation

vided service quality remainsgood and the two companies cancontinue to agree on prices, hebelieves that the co-operation islikely to continue well into the fu-ture.

Much is expected ofthe shuttle carrier

Co-operation might very wellexpand considerably in the nearfuture if the new shuttle carriermeets expectations.

“If it proves to be as financial-ly profitable as estimated, thenwe’ll certainly get another one. Itwill have to operate on an almostcontinuous basis to be profit-able,” says Mr Nyström.

According to Mr Nyström,one of the key reasons HMTchose the shuttle carrier was dueto its versatility.

“The shuttle carrier’s benefitsderive chiefly from its diverse op-erations. It is really a cross be-tween a lifter and a horizontalmover. Another key benefit isspeed,” he says.

The introduction of the shut-tle carrier means that HMT willhave to make some changes toits terminal operations in order toget the most out of the machine.The shuttle carrier will work on itsown and also in tandem with oth-er machines.

“The shuttle carrier makesthe long horizontal trips on itsown, while the reachstackertakes down containers fromstacks of 3-5 containers high.Similarly, the shuttle delivers con-tainers that have been off-loadedfrom ships to the terminal, wherethe reachstacker lifts them intoplace.”

“We’ve learned a lot”

According to Markku Kaivonen,After Sales Manager of KalmarSuomi, the Finnish Sales Compa-ny, the first service contract withHMT was signed in 1999. The ex-isting five-year agreement will berenegotiated next summer.

“We probably won the ser-vice agreement because wewere supplier of the equipmentand HMT felt it could trust our de-livery capabilities and reliability.Co-operation with HMT has beenvery important to us financiallyand also image-wise. Indeed,HMT accounts for almost 20 per-cent of our service operations.”

Kalmar runs a nine-man re-pair workshop in Hamina respon-sible for both maintenance andrepairs. Mr Kaivonen supervisesoperations and handles the ser-vice contract’s technical aspectsand implementation. He is intouch with HMT’s people severaltimes daily, and the repair shopforeman contacts HMT evenmore frequently. Mr Kaivonenfeels that co-operation betweenthe parties has been a markedsuccess and that repairs havebeen completed on time. Never-theless, the shop intends to im-prove its services further by pro-viding even better quality.

“Our co-operation has beenvery close, fast paced, and fruit-

ful. HMT is our first service agree-ment and we’ve learned a lotfrom it,” says Mr Kaivonen.

The HMT contract has givenKalmar a feel for how to operatein this type of business, as well asvaluable experience in how to or-ganise logistics and identify thenecessary tools for doing so. Thisexperience will undoubtedlyprove useful to Kalmar in otherbusiness activities.

The co-operation with HMThas also deepened with time.Agreements were signed for fournew machines last year.

Maintenance has runsmoothly

HMT’s maintenance managerOssi Wilén has been involved in

the service partnership for itsfive-year entirety. He says thatco-operation has improved eachyear, which in his opinion is notsurprising, as teamwork is what itis all about. Now that the partieshave got to know each other bet-ter, things have also run on asmoother track.

“Our co-operation has pro-ceeded smoothly: the flow of in-formation has improved and ma-chine reports become morecomprehensive. Both of us havebeen flexible and helpful. Thoughthere is still some room for im-provement, spare part deliverieshave also improved.”

The relationship betweenHMT and Kalmar has been veryclose, but that is exactly howthings should be in service agree-ments, says Mr Wilén. The begin-ning of the relationship involvedless work, but things have pickedup as the machines have be-come older.

Mr Wilén is satisfied with Kal-mar’s maintenance and repairservice, even though he notesthat sometimes things could behandled a bit faster. The agree-ment has guaranteed, however,that HMT’s machines get priorityin the Hamina workshop.

“We’ve been able to identifywhich machine is to be sent formaintenance at any given time.However, a new workshop wouldprovide the space needed forbigger repairs. At present, suchrepairs require the machine to besent to Tampere factory.”

The service agreement has apositive effect on HMT’s financesin the sense that the companydoesn’t need to employ its ownservice personnel and mainte-nance is guaranteed. Kalmar’sstrong product support is also avaluable asset.

Established: 1999Owned by: Haminan Satama Oy (Hamina Port)Personnel: 60Net sales: EUR 7.5 million

Hamina Multimodal Terminals Ky operates the European contain-er of the Port of Hamina and also provides terminal services tothe port’s transit warehouses, shipping firms, railway agents andforwarders. In addition, HMT manages the port’s empty containersand bulk material on and off of ships.

In 2003 the company handled a total of 60,000 containers, halfof which were in the railway terminal. The company also handlesabout 40 percent of Hamina port’s sea freight.

The container terminal covers 25 hectares and berth length is600 metres. HMT operates three ship-to-shore cranes and also anup-to-date CTIS yard control system.

Hamina MultimodalTerminals Ky

Kalmar supplies bothequipment and contractmaintenance services toFinland’s Hamina Multi-modal Terminals Ky (HMT).The newest addition toHMT’s fleet is a KalmarShuttle Carrier, deliveredto the terminal in March2004.

Continued from page 1

22 23

Visualise the Caribbean and the picture which immediately comes to mind is secluded,pristine, white sandy beaches, crystal clear blue seas and palms trees swaying gentlyin the wind.

Threatening this picture of tranquillity however, is a more ugly reality; the everincreasing problem of manmade flotsam and jetsam. Plastics, bottles, cans,polystyrene, car batteries and even household appliances mar not only the aestheticbeauty but effect the ecological environment.

As the tourist industry continuesto increase, with even the mostremote island now becomingaccessible, the islands in theCaribbean region are poised toexploit their new found fame.Investment in major infrastruc-ture in terms of airports, sea-ports, hotels and shopping mallsare on the increase but many ofthe islands' governments haveignored the fundamental reasonthat keeps the flow of touristscoming. Clean beaches and seas.

Islands like Tobago that havevast coral reefs are threateningtheir economic existence by ig-noring the problems of pollution.The Buccoo Reef, long know forits colourful and varied coral isunder serious threat and in factvast areas of it have already suc-cumbed to the inevitable back-lash of pollution and are now bar-ren wastes of what was once abeacon to divers.

The reason for this ecologicalcatastrophe is simple. Neglect.Insufficient rubbish facilities, cou-pled with an inadequate sewagetreatment plants and a lack ofenvironment awareness hastransformed this once enviablecoral forest into one nowdoomed for extinction.

Coral grows at a rate of just1 cm-10 cm a year. Reefs areecosystems that thrive in warm,clean, nutrient deficient waterthat have a stable ratio of sun-light and salinity. When theseconditions are varied, algaeblooms, depriving the coralpolyps of sunlight. A high abun-dance of algae consumes oxygenin the water and affects the feed-ing habits of shellfish and otherorganisms that filter water to ob-tain their food.

Ciguatera, a harmful algaespecies has been linked to20000-30000 cases that occureach year in the north-easternCaribbean region of Puerto Ricoand the US Virgin islands. Thisform of human poisoning iscaused by the consumption ofsubtropical and tropical marinefin-fish like grouper, barracuda,and snapper that have accumu-lated naturally occurring toxinsthrough their diet. It can causegastrointestinal inflammation,neurological and cardiovasculardisorders.

Substances floating on thesurface are no less detrimental tothe marine environment. Plasticsaccount for being 90% of thefloating litter found at sea. Entan-glement of sea creatures in plas-

tic materials are a growing prob-lem. Turtles often swallow plas-tics bags mistaking them for jelly-fish, while packaging materialwhich looks like shrimp or fish toother sea animals, invariablymeans death either through ablocked digestive tract or its toxicby-products.

GreenSeas Trust, Regis-tered Charity No 1098649, is try-ing to halt the decline of themarine environment in the Carib-bean with a ‘Litter Kills MarineLife,’ campaign. A pilot programwas in Tobago was implementedin 2003.

Trustee for the charity,Fazilette Khan, had no prior expe-rience in running a charity, buther background in the merchantnavy coupled with her passionfor the sea itself provided herwith the motivation needed. “Itwas a sharp, steep learningcurve, right from the start,” sheexplained.

Within six weeks however,the Trust implemented its “Bin onthe Beaches” project and placedgarbage bins along six of themost frequented beaches. Modi-fied oil drums were used for thepurpose. “Figuring out where andhow to cut, store, and transportthem was a problem bearing in

A Box for EuropeIn 2003, the EuropeanCommission proposed adraft directive on Inter-modal Loading Units (ILU)with the stated aim offacilitating the transfer offreight from one mode oftransport to another. Itrevealed that it aimed tointroduce new mainte-nance, handling and secu-rity standards for suchunits, as well as a newEuropean standard, theEuropean IntermodalLoading Unit (EILU).

This news came as quite a sur-prise to the European transporta-tion industry even though, whenasked, most will concede thatthere are simply far too manyshapes and sizes of ‘intermodal’equipment out in the market-place at present, some of whichis ill-suited to intermodal han-dling. The debate about the EILUcontinues in the corridors ofBrussels and most intermodaltransport operators hope that thesubject will be quietly forgotten,leaving commercial realities todictate equipment sizes.

One of the biggest problemsin establishing a standard specifi-cation is that different transportoperators and different transportflows have different require-ments and most would say ‘vivela difference’.

Shortsea shipping operatorsin Europe have adopted the 45 ft(13.7 m) long , 2.5 m wide con-tainer as their standard box be-cause it offers a pallet capacitysimilar to a 13.6 m trailer, thelongest semi-trailer length per-mitted to operate throughout theEU. The 8 ft (2.4 m) wide containerwidth, which is universally usedin the deepsea trades, does notallow the same pallet loading ca-pability and so a 45 ft long, 8 ftwide container would be at acompetitive disadvantage withtrailers, say the European inter-modalists.

The Commission is also pro-posing a maximum height for theEILU of 2670 mm. This would al-low these units to access prettywell most of the existing Europe-an rail network and avoid theneed for gooseneck trailers, nec-essary in some European coun-tries when trucking higher con-tainers. However, many existing45 ft pallet-wide containers are 9ft 6 in (2.9 m) high and again, op-erators say they would lose outto trailers if the interior heightwere restricted.

To stack or not to stack

Because shortsea shipping linesuse lift-on, lift-off ships and ma-rine container terminals, theyneed the robustness and stack-ability of a container. They alsoneed top lift capability. However,those transport operators whosetraffic flows do not involve mari-time legs utilising lift-on, lift-offships tend to feel that the con-tainer is over-engineered – andhence too heavy and expensive– for them. They prefer swapbod-ies which tend to be of a lighter

construction and not usuallycapable of being top-lifted orstacked when loaded.

Swapbodies come in a vari-ety of sizes: 13.6 m is the stan-dard length for transport onsemi-trailers but shorter units,typically 7.15 m, 7.45 m and7.82 m, are used in tandem onroad trains. While some are capa-ble of top lifting, many are notand require the lifting unit, be itan FLT, a reachstacker or a gantrycrane, to be fitted with arms thatcan swing down to lock into bot-tom-lift pockets.

While such units make com-mercial sense for the transportoperator, for intermodal terminaloperators, these bottom-lift onlyunits can be a real nuisance. Theycannot be stacked and evenwhen grounded, need space tobe left at the sides so that thebottom-lift pockets can be ac-cessed by the lifting equipment.Consequently they occupy muchmore space in the terminal thancontainers. Furthermore, the bot-tom-lift operation is more timeconsuming and some terminaloperators wish the market wouldallow them to charge those whouse such equipment a higherrate than is applicable to contain-ers.

Dealing with diversity

In addition to these intermodalunits, there are also 20 ft and 30ft tank containers and tank swap-bodies of various lengths, someof which have the tank barrelsextending beyond the frame andsome with only a base and noframe at all. Again, for the termi-nal operator, these units are notalways loved, not least for the

high risk of damage to the vulner-able areas of these expensiveunits when being handled.

For Kalmar, the wide varietyof equipment being freely mixedin European terminals presentstechnical challenges but so far,none have been insurmountable.Combi spreaders exist which cancope with the various lengths ofcontainer and swapbody andwith the differing requirements oftop-lift and bottom-lift.

Kalmar has also workedclosely with terminal operatorswith regard to improved levels ofvisibility, partly for safety reasonsbut also to reduce the incidenceof damage to both the handlingmachinery and the units beinghandled.

One recommendation madeby the Commission in its draftEILU proposals that seems tohave much merit is that inter-modal units should be capable ofbeing top-lifted. While technologyhas solved the problem of bot-tom-lifting, spreaders that can liftvirtually any type of transport unitare inevitably heavier, more com-plex and more expensive thansimple container top-lift spread-ers. It would save terminal oper-ators Europe-wide a consider-able sum of money if top-lift waspossible with 100% of the unitsthey handle.

Whatever the outcome of theEILU debate, one thing is certain:Kalmar will be ready with the ma-chines to handle EILUs just as ef-ficiently as any other size of inter-modal unit.

David Cheslin

In the European shortsea trades, the 45 ft container is operated by a number of lines including Geest, Containerships and Norfolkline. The ability to stack is essential.

mind our very limited resources.In the end it was a case of goingup to people and begging forhelp in kind.” said Fazilette. “Themost heartening thing to seehowever, was the impact this rel-atively simple remedy made.What had only a few weeks agobeen dirty and littered beacheschanged steadily into ones frompicture postcard.”

Education in schools wasthe next step for GreenSeas Trust.Between 4-7 volunteers visits aschool, each taking a class. This,on average means, between120-200 students are informed ofenvironmental issues. Using avariety of material students aregiven the facts and more impor-tantly, the motivation as to whyand how their singular contribu-tions can make a difference tomarine ecology and eventually totheir lives.

The Trust is now hoping todevelop and run a recycling plantin Trinidad. This is by far its mostambitious plan which will notonly benefit Trinidad and Tobagobut also its neighbouring islandsincluding St Vincent and theGrenadines.

Facilette Khan

For more information onGreenSeas Trust visit thewebsite:www.greenseas.org

GreenSeas Trust

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