ANOTHER BATCH OF 10 NEW STRADDLE CARRIERS HAVE ARRIVED AT DCT

 

Another ten new diesel electric straddle carriers have arrived at the Durban Container Terminal (DCT) Pier 2. This takes the total number of new single lift straddle carriers delivered at the terminal in the last 10 months to 33. The full consignment of 45 new straddle carriers came in batches from both Poland and China, with delivery for the outstanding balance of 12 expected at the end of July 2021.

It will take the technical team another month to complete both hot and cold commissioning on all the machines as they have arrived 50% commissioned to allow for flexibility during transit.

This includes a variety of functions like hydraulic, auxiliary and load testing, installation of fire suppression, radio and WIFI as well as fitment of NAVIS vehicle mounted terminals. A series of trainings will take place parallel to the commissioning across operators, technical and maintenance employees before the straddle carriers are handed over for operational use.

 

 

According to Managing Executive of Durban Terminals Jabu Mdaki, “The terminal’s equipment woes are well documented and having reliable equipment to work with solves a significant portion of the puzzle”. He added that it ought to count for something for the terminal and TPT as a whole, to honour a commitment made to industry, especially in the container sector.

The straddle carriers have advanced safety and convenience features designed to assist the driver with the most burdensome parts of driving, such as container handling and in yard driving. The equipment also features a user-friendly interface for function activating and blind spot detection to avoid collision, with an ability to regulate and monitor driver behaviours.

“Perhaps the grandest of all features which is also a new straddle carrier technology for our terminal is the local crane monitoring system. It improves maintenance and productivity of the straddle carrier through providing a mechanical and performance status, fault management, production and energy reports,” said Mdaki.

Durban Container Terminal