New low-emission Kalmar straddle carriers arrived at Forth Ports’ container ports at Grangemouth and Tilbury in the United Kingdom earlier this week.
This was part of a significant investment in equipment for Forth Ports’ important box terminals.
The 12 straddle carriers were transported from Kalmar’s facility in Poland by the specialist vessel Aura, which delivered five to the port of Grangemouth and then sailed down the east coast to the London Container Terminal (LCT) at Tilbury with the remaining seven machines.
The 12 carriers are the Kalmar ESC440 model, equipped with the latest low-emission engine technology capable of accommodating the transition to alternative non-fossil fuels. The use of alternative fuel types contributes to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
According to Fourth Ports, the new straddle carriers have the capacity to carry 40-ton cargo, capable of handling the full range of container sizes. The carriers will be fitted with Verified Gross Mass (VGM) weighing capability to weigh the boxes.
Additionally, for the straddle carrier driver, the cab is fully air-conditioned and on colder days, it has the latest air suspension heated seat.
The new equipment is part of the Forth Ports’ equipment replacement programme. The current fleet at LCT is 36 and 16 at Grangemouth.
“Our container terminals in Tilbury and Grangemouth are key shipping and distribution locations and it’s essential that we keep investing in our equipment and infrastructure to ensure that we continue to deliver industry leading service provision,” commented Stuart Wallace, chief operating officer of Fourth Ports.
He added, “We are always impressed with Kalmar’s straddle carriers and these are our straddle of choice. These new straddles form part of our multimillion-pound investment in our two busy container ports in Grangemouth and in Tilbury.”
