EQUIPMENT CORNER\\\ New wagons boost


Freightliner’s 40ſt capacity


Freightliner has ordered a fleet of twin-platform Ecofret ‘Shortliner’ wagons from hire company VTG to meet increasing demand for transport of 40ſt containers. The twin-set 40ſt deck length wagons are designed to maximise the number of 40ſt containers that can be hauled on one service without empty running or the 20ſt of wasted space as


on Freightliner’s existing 60ſt wagons. Freightliner is also using


the new wagons and its new PowerHaul locomotives to create new Shortliner services, which will increase the amount of 40ſt containers hauled per train by over 42% in comparison to compared with a train hauled by one of its older Class 66


locomotives. The new wagons can still carry 20ſt boxes if needed. Freightliner managing director,


Adam Cunliffe commented: “Our capability to haul longer, heavier trains teamed with our new wagons is ensuring more containers can be moved by rail, reducing CO2 emissions and removing more lorries from the UK’s congested roads.”


First new flatcars for GCS


The Global Container Service Group (GCS) has taken delivery of the first batch of an eventual total of 224 80ſt rail flat-cars, built by Transmash in Engels.


They will be deployed in block trains operated by GCS group member Ruscon,and will enable it to expand its block train operations. Its most recent new


service, launched last December, serves the port of Novorossiysk and operates to the Tikhonovo intermodal terminal in Elabuga, Tatarstan.


Woodland leads the way with new scanner


The Woodland Group has become the first UK freight forwarder to install a Westminster dual view cargo and pallet X-ray scanner – a state-of-the-art machine more commonly seen in the US until now, says the forwarder. The cWG IS1517 cargo and


pallet X-ray scanner is already operational at Woodland’s air cargo centre at Heathrow airport and the company is now considering a second machine for the group’s New York warehouse. Woodland’s head of air,


Andy Dennis, said: “We believe that logistics providers will


come under


i n c r e a s i n g pressure ensure is


to cargo scanned


from multiple angles


and


so we are delighted


to


be leading the way with the latest technology.” The WG IS1517, 7.9m long and


2.9m high, can inspect cargo, pallets and large parcels up to a maximum load of 2,000kg. Peter Fowler, the chief executive officer of Westminster


Group PLC, which supplied the machine, said: “Woodland is the first UK freight forwarder to install Westminster’s high performance, dual-view scanners which will not only increase efficiency but also give piece of mind that cargo has been properly screened.”


Felixstowe slashes fuel costs


Geodis’ Geodis Calberson subsidiary has invested in 13 Krone double deck trailers for its European and domestic runs from the UK. Each trailer can carry up to 66 pallets of goods over two floors and has an internal mechanism that creates the second floor when required. The investment is the final stage of Geodis Calberson’s four-year-long


conversion of its 34-strong fleet of double deckers to Krone vehicles. Ray Cook, traffic director of Geodis Calberson, says: “There is a huge reduction in costs of transportation for our clients. This is the third set of trailers we have had from Krone, we are very happy with them and they have had a good reception from clients. We use them for two or three clients on European business


and national business. A lot of their product is double spec and because it is crushable, normally only 33 pallets can be loaded, but with these trailers you can drop beams into place, which allows you to load 66 pallets safely.” But the trailers do meet the


lower continental European height restrictions, being under four metres tall.


Liſt for Transdek


Yorkshire based loading equipment manufacturer Transdek has received its second Queen’s Award for


Enterprise in Innovation for its ground-breaking developments in truck loading systems. The award recognises the company’s


continued innovation in the field of of modular hydraulic lifts to service double deck trailers.


A solution for small parts storage


German manufacturer BITO says that its new Compact Storage Module optimises storage space without restricting access.


The small parts storage solution


Control Techniques says that it has saved the Port of Felixstowe around a quarter of its diesel consumption on 12 of its rubber tyred gantry cranes (RTGs). Diesel generators on RTGs and mobile harbour cranes (MHCs) usually


run at constant speed to provide the drive system and auxiliaries with a constant supply voltage regardless of whether the crane is in operation or stand-by. However, Control Techniques’ RIS.GA drive- based system manages the diesel


generator, allowing its speed to be reduced during stand-by, whilst maintaining essential power for auxiliary and safety equipment. The system is expected to give a return on investment in well under three years.


comprises drawers with a load capacity of 150kg that pull out completely – and smoothly - giving clear access to every part of the contents and allowing pickers to access and retrieve parts that are stored right at the back of the drawer just as easily as from the front. The 1550mm tall Compact


Storage Module is 1206mm deep and 900mm wide, which allows three units to fit into a typical 2.7m wide bay of racking. The standard unit has five drawers and an anti-tilt


device that only allows one drawer to be extended at a time. BITO Storage Systems managing


director Edward Hutchison says: “Manufacturing trends such as JIT and Kanban, along with the phenomenal growth of online retail, where products are picked in singles, means the demand for innovative small parts storage solutions is on the rise. By combining the most space efficient design with complete access to products, BITO’s Compact Storage Module will be the ideal solution for many storage operations.”


Issue 3 2012


35 Maintenance for the non-engineer


Specialist insurance provider TT Club has published a new handbook on equipment maintenance for non-technical staff. The 76-page publication, ‘The


Importance of Maintenance – a handbook for non-engineers’ has been produced in association with the International Cargo Handling Co-ordination Association (ICHCA International) and the Port Equipment Manufacturers Association (PEMA), and is described as a comprehensive guide for good practice in maintenance procedures. It follows a spate of costly


insurance claims in which lack of maintenance was a factor. TT Club says that its own analysis of the port and terminal industry suggests that inadequate or incorrect maintenance procedures cause about 25% of the cost of equipment damage. Furthermore, about half of claims where cranes are blown


along their rails are exacerbated by poor maintenance of gantry motors or brakes. This handbook aims to help


port management and other businesses involved in cargo handling improve control of their assets in straightforward and cost-effective ways. It avoids technical jargon and instead emphasises key processes to protect the bottom line and improve profitability. While the engineering department is usually responsible for asset life cycle management, the operations department seldom has any significant involvement which, TT Club argues, is misguided and urges operators


to overcome


departmental differences and to implement an integrated maintenance policy and strategy. As well as maintenance, the


handbook considers the use of key performance indicators (KPIs) in monitoring asset performance


and, rather than a reactive, tactical, approach to investment in maintenance, the TT Club argues for a preventative strategy on how to sustain assets. Soſtware tools can also aid planned, efficient, cost-based maintenance, but the fundamental issue is management attitude. Lack of maintenance can


result in unplanned down-time and repairing an unexpected failure can be up to six times more expensive than planned preventative maintenance, the book points out. ‘The


Importance of


Maintenance – a handbook for non-engineers’ is available both in printed form and as a pdf document. Copies of both are free to members of the TT Club, PEMA and ICHCA International, and can be purchased by non-members at £36 through the publications section of the TT Club website www.ttclub.com.


Calberson aims ever higher with new trailers


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