The Future of Quayside Container Cranes

by Catherine 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.