THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, August 7, 1995 TAG: 9508050200
SECTION: BUSINESS WEEKLY PAGE: 14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY CHRISTOPHER DINSMORE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 133 lines
In the high stakes world of international shipping, moments can matter.
The faster a ship can be unloaded and loaded, the sooner it can be back at sea carrying cargos to meet the just-in-time delivery demands of today's economy.
That's why shipping lines such as Evergreen Line, a giant Taiwanese container shipping company, want to use the three southernmost cranes at Norfolk International Terminals.
Those three container cranes are the fastest in the port of Hampton Roads, moving an average of 30 to 33 containers an hour between a ship and waiting trucks. Known as dual-hoist cranes, they are also the most expensive to buy and operate.
As the port expands to meet the surging growth in international trade, the Virginia Port Authority has been looking for a less expensive crane that offers similar speed.
Now it may have one.
A pair of engineers working for Virginia International Terminals Inc. have designed a crane as fast as dual-hoist cranes but less costly. The new design also resolves a pesky sway problem that has plagued past container cranes.
``If it has the productivity of a dual-hoist at less cost, it will be a valuable asset,'' said John Vickerman, a port logistics consultant and president of Vickerman Zachary Miller, which has done consulting work for the port authority.
A container crane stands well over 150 feet tall and weighs more than 800 tons. The imposing structure rolls along rails on a pier with its boom extended out over vessels berthed beside it. A trolley on the boom plucks and shuttles containers on and off ships.
Designing cranes is nothing new for Virginia International Terminals' engineers. In the late-1970s, VIT engineers designed the dual-hoist cranes now in place at the Norfolk terminal.
``We're innovative and we want to have higher productivity to serve our customers,'' said Dave Rudolf, VIT's director of engineering and maintenance. ``We don't want to wait until the manufacturers develop a more productive crane.''
Rudolf designed the new crane, known as an elevating trolley crane, with the help of Tony Simkus, VIT's research and development supervisor. Rudolf helped his then-boss Rick Knapp, now assistant general manager at VIT, design the dual-hoist crane at the Norfolk terminal.
Virginia International Terminals operates the three state-owned terminals in Norfolk, Portsmouth and Newport News for the port authority.
The new crane design features two innovations. Both have been patented internationally by Rudolf.
The crane's boom can be moved up and down so that it can serve the largest containership or a lowly barge with little change in efficiency. On previous cranes, booms had fixed heights.
The crane also pulls a container up between two arms on the trolley that stabilize it as the container is loaded on and off ships. Current cranes dangle containers on cables below the trolley as they are moved, creating sway.
``The biggest single thing that inhibits crane productivity is sway,'' Rudolf said.
No decision has been made, but the port authority will likely solicit bids for one of the new cranes in January from crane builders from around the world. It will be tested at the new containership berth being built at Norfolk International Terminals. That berth is scheduled to open in 1998.
Designing cranes is not without risks. ``It's new and it has to be proven,'' Vickerman said.
To be useful, the crane must move as many containers less expensively than other cranes. It also must be accepted by the longshoremen who will operate it, Vickerman said.
Hampton Roads is one of only two ports in the world to design its own crane, Rudolf said. The other is the massive Dutch port of Rotterdam, which also developed a dual-hoist crane.
``Other ports take what manufacturers give them,'' Rudolf said.
A dual-hoist crane lifts a container off a ship and places it on a platform. Another part of the crane lifts the container from the platform to the pier.
A dual-hoist crane costs nearly $10 million to build, more than twice what a simpler single-hoist costs.
Single-hoist cranes lift containers and move them between ship and shore in a single movement. About 20 percent less productive than dual-hoist cranes, single-hoist cranes move an average of 25 to 28 containers an hour, Rudolf said.
Except for the three dual-hoist cranes at the Norfolk terminal, all the cranes in Hampton Roads are single-hoist.
While faster, a dual-hoist crane is significantly more expensive to operate due to their initial cost and because they take two people to operate.
Only a small number of ports around the world have bought such cranes due to their expense, Vickerman said.
When the port authority purchases cranes for the new berth at the Norfolk terminal, the second crane for that berth will likely be a typical single-hoist.
But if the elevating trolley crane performs as expected, the port will probably buy more of them as it continues to expand the Norfolk terminal, Rudolf said.
The new crane is a single-hoist crane that offers productivity close to a dual-hoist. It will cost about $8 million, more than a single-hoist, but less than a dual-hoist.
``Given its productivity, it's more cost effective than either,'' Rudolf said.
This combination is something shipping lines want. Containerships are getting bigger and making fewer port calls to reduce the cost of moving containers across the oceans.
So far, Hampton Roads has been a winner among ports on the U.S. East Coast, thanks to its natural deep water and mostly unified port operation.
If the new crane works as predicted, it will add to that edge. VIT plans license the new design to keep the crane out of the hands of competitors.
``The bottom line is the customer is looking for service and cost considerations,'' Vickerman said. ``Assuming the new design works in reality, it could be a great advantage.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Cover]
[Color Photos]
THE MOTHER OF INVENTION
BILL TIERNAN/Staff photo
BILL TIERNAN/Staff photos
Dave Rudolf, VIT's director of engineering and maintenance.
While faster than a single-hoist, a dual-hoist crane, above, is
significantly more expensive due to their initial cost and because
they take two people to operate. The new elevating trolley crane,
right, should increase productivity and be cost-effective.
CRANE DESIGN
Illustrations
by CNB