The largest mobile harbour crane on the US east cost
has been officially commissioned for service at Rukert
Terminals, Baltimore.
In August this year, Liebherr — a major supplier of
port equipment and a renowned manufacturer of
mobile harbour cranes — delivered its LHM 500S
mobile harbour crane to Rukert Terminals. Rukert
Terminals is located at the Port of Baltimore and
specializes in the handling of metals, ores, salt, alloys,
and other dry bulk and breakbulk cargoes and
containers.
The tremendous growth in the region over the past
decades in terms of global trade, and the associated
demand of freight and handling capacity has increased
the importance of efficient infrastructure. The new
crane has a lifting capacity of up to 140 tonnes and a
maximum outreach of 51 metres. Equipped with 2x70
tonnes winches, the main the new LHM 500S will be
used for handling fertilizers, salt, project cargo and
heavy lift cargo.
“The mobile harbour crane sector is an important
strategic field of expansion for the Liebherr group.
With this latest order our customer demonstrates
great trust in the superior technology and the
excellent Liebherr service and support. Also, this
order was strategically important for our future sales
ambition on the US east cost,” explains Michael
Kaunelis, regional sales manager.
The decision in favour of Liebherr’s solution follows
a comprehensive evaluation of available mobile harbour
crane systems conducted by the client. The initial
implementation includes rigorous process and
performance analyses. Other important factors that
influenced the decision to work with Liebherr — apart
from very quick delivery times — were mainly the
flexibility of the Liebherr harbour mobile cranes in
handling different cargoes on a frequent basis (containers, bulk
and general cargo, scrap etc.) and the compatibility with partly
existing stringent ground pressures at the piers, based on a
unique undercarriage concept.
“This is an exciting time in the 90-year history of Rukert
Terminals, says Rukert’s president John Coulter. With the
construction of a new 1,000-foot-long berth with 50 feet of
draught designed specifically with this crane in mind, we are
ready for the next generation of vessels. We performed
extensive research and found Liebherr to be the obvious answer
for our needs. The Liebherr LHM 500S is a cutting edge crane
that fits perfectly into our operation. Unlike most cranes built
today, the LHM 500S performs extremely well in all four phases
of our cargo base. Very fast bulk cycle times, great heavy lift
capacity, and exceptionally efficient breakbulk and container
capacity. Couple that with a 25% more efficient engine and
stellar track record for support, we could not be happier!”
Now that the crane has discharged its first vessel, Liebherr
solutions have become an integral part of Rukert Terminals
facility plans that enable safe and efficient handling of various dry
bulk goods, break-bulk cargoes as well as containers. With
Liebherr’s eco-efficient products and services, Rukert Terminals
will receive the benefit from lowered energy consumption,
reduced spare parts needs and improved operating efficiency.
ABOUT THE COMPANY
The Liebherr Group comprises over 100 companies worldwide
with a total workforce in excess of 32,000 people. In 2009, it
achieved a total consolidated turnover of about €6.8 billion. The
Liebherr Group’s holding company is Liebherr-International AG in
Bulle (Switzerland), which is wholly owned by members of the
Liebherr family. The business is now in the hands of the second
generation of the family and is jointly run by Dipl. Kfm. Isolde
Liebherr and her brother Dr. h.c. Dipl.-Ing. (ETH) Willi Liebherr.
Liebherr-Werk Nenzing GmbH, Nenzing (Austria), is the
largest maritime crane production site and head of the divisional
controlling company, the Liebherr-MCCtec GmbH, which is
responsible for the Liebherr range of maritime cranes.
The Liebherr-MCCtec GmbH has now four state-of-the-art
production sites for maritime cranes in Nenzing, Rostock
(Germany), Sunderland (United Kingdom) and Killarney (Ireland)
as well as seven fully owned sales and service organizations in
Hong Kong, Amersfoort (Netherlands), Hamburg (Germany),
Niederhergheim (France), Istanbul (Turkey), Mumbai (India) and
Baku (Azerbaijan). The maritime distribution network comprises
35 sales and service companies in total as well as a variety of
third party agents and dealers. More than 3,300 employees are
currently based at such various sites.