Port and Harbor Cranes Expand Shipping Capabilities
Written by Heather Ervin
The first of two mobile harbor cranes is offloaded at the Port of Savannah’s Ocean Terminal, June 30, 2020. Two new mobile harbor cranes will allow the Georgia Ports Authority to grow container-handling services on the 200-acre facility. The cranes arrived by barge and were offloaded June 30 and July 1.
OnWatch Scout’s Crane Connection
Future development plans include extension of the OnWatch Scout capability beyond cargo and load handling cranes to include hatch covers, deck machinery and other critical equipment and systems.
Making expert knowledge available to customers through simulation-based training is another information-based capability that enhances crew capabilities, operational safety and equipment reliability.
“Whereas OnWatch Scout provides real-time, condition based information, ‘digital twin’ services provide a dynamic environment that enable procedure demonstrations and training to take place, with the ability for this type of training to be undertaken by crew onboard being a planned development of MacGregor’s,” says Mol.
John Carnall, MacGregor’s Senior Vice President, Global Services, says that good maintenance practices of equipment, including cranes and material handlers, positively support business operations, but that saving costs does not mean cutting down on maintenance itself.
“In many cases, these incidents could have been avoided through periodic visual inspection, but the prolonged industry downturn and current Coronavirus crisis has meant that maintenance budgets have been impacted,” Carnall says. “All equipment, if left unchecked, will gradually deteriorate in performance and efficiency, and ultimately fail. Shipowners and operators know this and that planned maintenance is more cost-effective because emergency repairs are almost always more expensive. While it is understandable that longer term cost benefits may not be the highest priority when short-term survival is in question, ongoing operational reliability and potential reputational damage must also be considered.”
Categories: Inland, News, Technology
