Publications

by Michael Jordan, Cathy Morris, and Anna Dix
Presented by Michael Jordan at the Ports 2007 Conference

Container terminals are becoming increasingly more congested and expensive to operate. Highways and railways are already congested by container traffic and this congestion will worsen. Pollution from port operations is also a rising concern. These factors create a growing need for new, more economical terminal operation methods. Floaterm is a concept that helps alleviate congestion and pollution.

This presentation discusses two variations of Floaterm concepts: midstream and ship-in-a-slip operations. Engineering calculations have been prepared to verify the technical feasibility of the concepts, but are not included here.

by Derrick Lind, Jonathan Hsieh, and Michael Jordan

Presented by Derrick Lind at the Ports 2007 Conference

Conventional single hoist container cranes have been in use since the mid-sixties. Many innovations have been developed to improve the productivity, including increases in trolley/hoist speeds, cranes with two trolleys, and elevating girder cranes. The latest development is a tandem 40 crane that can handle two 40 foot containers for each lift.

This presentation discusses single hoist tandem 40 (SHT40) and dual hoist tandem 40 (DHT40) cranes. These cranes pick up two or more containers with a single trolley running on a conventional runway. We compare these cranes to conventional container cranes and discuss tandem crane components, the importance of improved yard operations to accommodate the tandem 40s, impact on wharf structure design, and possible productivity improvements.

by Michael Jordan, Feroze Vazifdar, Patrick McCarthy, and Larry Wright

This paper provides port owners with information to be considered before purchasing DHT40 cranes.

by Erik Soderberg and Michael Jordan

Presented by Erik Soderberg at the AAPA Port Facilities Engineering Conference

This presentation discusses emerging tandem 40 dual hoist systems being developed to reduce the vessel time at the berth, and addresses some considerations at the crane-yard interface.

by Michael Jordan

This presentation discusses two of the many systems being developed to reduce the vessel berth time—the use of Tandem 40 dual hoist cranes and Floaterm, a scheme to service vessels midstream. Tandem 40 dual hoist cranes are already in use and the Foaterm concept may be in use in the future.

by Arun Bhimani, Mark A. Sisson, and Catherine A. Morris
Presented by Arun Bhimani and Bob Johansen at the Ports 2004 Conference

The continuing growth of marine container terminals is causing increasing environmental concerns among neighboring communities. The increasing container volumes have resulted in increased truck traffic and larger and faster container handling equipment. The higher truck traffic has raised concerns about diesel fumes and traffic congestion. The larger cranes have raised concerns about noise levels and visual impact. The increase in number and size of the cranes and the encroachment of the terminals and the neighboring communities on each other exacerbate the problem.

This presentation examines the environmental impact of the ever-increasing size of dockside container cranes on neighboring communities and presents potential solutions to reduce the impact.

by Arun Bhimani and Michael Jordan

Jumbo Cranes—cranes with outreaches of 60 meters or more, lifts above the crane rail of 46 meters, and capacities of 60, 80, 100, and 120 tons—are already built or being built. Why? Increased traffic and the economy of size. Larger vessels can deliver more for less, so terminals must deliver more.

Of the many issues created by these cranes, five are discussed in this paper: configuration, size and weight, stability, operator comfort, and a recent concern, visual impact.

by Erik Soderberg

Over time, vessel size and container weights have increased. While the size, mass, and strength of the crane structure have also increased, the stiffness of the crane structure has not increased proportionally. The crane response to trolley and gantry accelerations has changed.

Several years ago, operators reported undesirable crane deflections in the trolley travel direction during operation. Liftech responded by developing crane stiffness requirements in the trolley travel direction to limit the crane deflection, and the problem was solved.

Within the last year, a similar problem has emerged. Some operators reported unacceptable boom vibration in the gantry travel direction.

This paper discusses the factors affecting lateral boom vibration, what vibrations are acceptable, and provides recommendations to reduce lateral boom vibrations.

by Arun Bhimani

In Los Angeles, the public has objected to the new skyline. In response to the public’s concerns, the port is considering using low profile cranes to reduce the visual impact on the skyline. This raises two questions:

Do low profile cranes improve the view?
If so, is the improvement worth the cost?

This presentation examines some crane types and sizes, the visual impact study for the Port of Los Angeles, and, finally, the proposed 22-wide low profile crane.

by Feroze Vazifdar and C. Davis Rudolf
Presented at the 2003 TOC Asia in Hong Kong

by Michael A. Jordan

Quay crane productivity has always been one of the critical components of terminal productivity. But the crane is, of course, only one of the terminal elements that controls production. Now, however, with ten to twelve thousand TEU ships coming over the horizon, within the next decade crane productivity may become the limiting component of the terminal’s production.

This presentation is about quay crane production. Now and forever, the crane’s production will never exceed that of the quay. Both the quay and the cranes need attention. This paper will only discuss the cranes.

by Arun Bhimani and Mark Sisson
Presented by Arun Bhimani and Mark Sisson at the 2002 Pan Pacific Conference

This presentation discusses vessel turnaround time and increasing quay crane performance necessitated by increasing pressure on ports to provide higher quayside performance levels and growing environmental pressure to optimize terminal facilities.

by Arun Bhimani
Liftech and JWD Group hosted a Crane and Terminal Workshop on November 6, 2001

Generations of container cranes operate in ports worldwide. Most newer cranes have outreach and lift height to serve ships 22-wide; meanwhile, engineers are evaluating designs to serve even wider ships. With so many options available, a thorough examination of owner and operator needs and expectations should underlie any crane specification or modification.

This section discusses procurement and other issues.

by Michael A. Jordan

For a dockside container crane, the future starts tomorrow and will last until 2025 or 2030. This is the reasonable life of a container crane. The crane may be operational for 40 years, but the useful life will not be more than 25 or 30 years, and even then the crane will need occasional upgrades to perform to modern standards.

We are now in a state of rapid change. Ships are larger and will continue to grow. Concomitantly, production must increase to maintain reasonable turnaround times. Laser and optical technologies also continue to develop, making current systems obsolete. Cranes ordered today must be capable of growing as new ships grow and technology evolves. The cranes must be future-proof.

But if today's crane is built large enough to serve tomorrow's ships using future technology, the crane will not perform well on today's ship with today's technology.

This paper presents our expectations of the future and some ideas on how to cope with them without paying now.

by Arun Bhimani

You are operating a small-to-medium size container terminal and need to purchase one or two new quay cranes. You have one or two older cranes and you maintain them with your in-house staff. These cranes were purchased many years ago in a climate very different from now and you have limited expertise in purchasing new cranes. What do you do? Should you purchase the cranes like you purchased your yard chassis and other equipment from an established supplier or should you venture into the new world of comparison shopping?

This presentation outlines the evolution of the container crane industry, explains the current crane purchase environment and different purchasing strategies, and provides two case studies.

by Michael A. Jordan

The jumbo ships are coming: 9,000, 12,000, even 15,000 TEUs. We will need ways to transfer containers between jumbo ship and quay and between quay and yard, rapidly and economically. Liftech and Jordan Woodman Dobson have been wrestling with these challenges for 30 years, but never before has it been so interesting.

Today, we have much better tools. Controls, lasers, optical devices, and computers have advanced, enabling a new look at ideas that were too complicated to manage just a few years ago. One idea that we have looked at again is a conveyor crane.

Early on, we realized reversing motions were undesirable and buffers were needed between operations to absorb delays. We attempted to develop a conveyor system, but met so many practical difficulties: controls, staffing, the removal of the interbox connectors, and the need for the conveyor to be 15 meters wide. We never developed a practical solution, then.

Times have changed. Our second look addresses all the difficulties and results in the jumbo crane shown.

by Arun Bhimani and Jonathan Hsieh

This presentation discusses the challenges, special requirements, and design solutions for the cranes serving the unique indented berth of Ceres Paragon Terminal in Amsterdam. Operating cranes on both sides of the ship requires a reliable collision avoidance system. The cranes also meet a strict noise abatement requirement necessitated by the terminal’s proximity to a residential neighborhood. In addition, these cranes are among the biggest and fastest, capable of lifting 100 metric tons and serving vessels 22-wide. Other special features include semi-automatic operation, corner transitioning, and intermittent rope supports. We believe many of the features presented will be required of future cranes.

by Michael A. Jordan
Presented at Paceco’s 11th International Conference

by Arun Bhimani

Just as we are getting used to beyond post-Panamax dockside container cranes, a new generation of larger cranes is here. Where cranes normally serve ships with 16 containers on deck, the ports of Oakland and Norfolk have ordered cranes to service 22 containers on deck.

The larger cranes raise questions and problems for the designer. Can the existing wharf support them? If a new wharf is being planned, should it be built to accommodate these cranes? Does the size affect choice of rope trolley vs machinery trolley? Are there other considerations?

Solutions to the problems involve innovative uses for existing technology. Some of our innovation creates new problems. Larger cranes mean longer trolley runways and increased hoist travel distance. Speeds are increased to maintain productivity. Larger cranes and faster equipment create a challenge for the operator. The electronic anti-sway is provided to assist the operator with positioning the container, but this modern load control method can create a larger problem if the crane structure is not properly designed.

The presentation discusses the design considerations associated with these larger cranes. A case study where recently purchased cranes experienced excessive vibration is presented along with the structural solution developed to correct the dynamic resonance problem.

by Michael A. Jordan

Larger models of container crane are susceptible to the problem of excessive frame sway in the trolley travel direction. This paper quantifies the problem and offers a solution.

by Michael A. Jordan

Eight thousand TEU ships will soon be here. Larger ships move containers for less, but the ships cost more. The ship is producing only when it is moving cargo. The ship moves cargo at sea, not at the berth. Ship turn time is wasted time. The challenge is to economically reduce turn time.

Reducing turn time has been the challenge for years. The obvious solution was to increase crane productivity. We did this. But it only helped a little, since the quay could not keep up with the cranes. A more global view was needed. The cranes, quay, yard, and gate must be examined as a system. The productivity of the system determines the ship turn time. The cranes are only a part of the system.

A new system is being planned for the new C. The system is designed to produce 300 net sustained moves per hour on one 8000 TEU ship. The key to this productivity is placing a large ship in a slip and servicing the ship from both sides, port and starboard. The new terminal being developed by the Port Management of Amsterdam and Ceres Marine Terminals Inc. will provide berthing for three ships: two ships at a marginal wharf and one ship in a slip.

by Arun Bhimani and Simo Hoite

The size of container cranes continues to increase to meet the demand of the larger ships. This trend has changed the governing conditions for container crane design. New conditions make a strong case for selecting machineryon-trolley post-Panamax cranes. This paper compares the MOT (machinery-on-trolley) with the RTT (rope towed trolley) system.

by Michael A. Jordan

We can communicate faster across the globe in 1998 than we could across town in 1958 when Paceco designed and built the first container crane. One result of cheaper, faster, and more reliable cargo transportation is the global factory. A product can contain components from anywhere in the world. Manufacturers who once had a local advantage now must compete worldwide. Buyer’s choices are difficult to make, and selecting a manufacturer can be more difficult than making the technical choices. This paper addresses both the technical and intangible issues facing crane buyers.

Cargo Systems article based on papers by Arun Bhimani, Catherine A. Morris, and Michael A. Jordan

Liftech Consultants Inc. and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries present their thoughts on the container crane of tomorrow, basing them on improvements made to the crane designs of today.

by Michael A. Jordan

Based on ideal conditions, the calculated production of today’s advanced super productive quay container cranes is 67 moves per hour while loading and unloading a 16 container-wide post-Panamax ship. In actual conditions, maximum production realized is limited to about 40 moves per hour. One reason the calculated crane production is so much higher than the real production is that the crane often waits for service. Effective crane design requires the designer to understand that the cranes are part of the terminal. This paper looks at some significant container crane design improvements that would allow super cranes to mesh with the terminal system.

by Catherine A. Morris and Simo Hoite

Container traffic continues to grow worldwide at about eight percent a year. The challenge is in the efficiency of the terminals that serve the larger ships. The front line of a terminal is its container handling quay cranes. New container cranes must move containers higher, farther, faster, and more accurately than ever before. There are four major design concerns for new cranes: size, speed, durability, and wheel loads and stability. This paper addresses these issues.

by Michael A. Jordan and Catherine A. Morris

Megaships, those larger than post-Panamax ships, need megacranes to service them. Although the sheer size of these giant cranes presents some challenges, the biggest challenge is productivity. The megaships will load and unload 4,000 boxes or more at one stop. While most agree that advanced electronic controls are needed and most use computer simulation to study performance, there is disagreement on the structure. Some want almost impossibly stiff cranes; others don’t care about stiffness. This paper discusses the pros and cons of various choices available to crane buyers.

by Arun Bhimani, Catherine A. Morris, and Shuji Karasuda

A look at two design approaches for megacrane performance: specify an extremely rigid structure and electronic load control system to control the load or specify strength requirements for the crane structure and electronic load control system to control the load and accommodate the crane deflections.

by Arun Bhimani and Julius Kerenyi

The evolution of container cranes with respect to trolley systems, how the resulting systems differ, and the reasons for APL’s decision to select the machinery trolley for their dockside container handling cranes.

by Michael A. Jordan

A look at state-of-the-art container cranes, both Panamax and post-Panamax. Wharf analysis and design considerations, as well as characteristic data, geometry, speeds, productivity, cost, load control, and rail reactions for the cranes, are included.

by Michael A. Jordan

The latest generation of container gantry designs, the super cranes, are described here. Learn about dual hoist cranes, the VIT elevating platform cranes, the VIT elevating girder cranes, and the Paceco Supertainer.

by Michael A. Jordan and C. Davis Rudolf III

Recent developments in the design of A-frame and low profile cranes with a discussion of the elevating trolley girder concept originated and patented by C. Davis Rudolf III and Anthony J. Simkus, Jr. of Virginia International Terminals.