AUTOMATED rubber tyre gantry cranes installed at the Indonesian port of Semarang are being hailed as significant steps forward in efficiency and safety.
Terminal Petikemas Semarang in Semarang, Central Java, is a large container terminal in the Pelindo III Group, which is in turn an Indonesian state-owned enterprise that manages 43 Indonesian ports.
About 70% of the port’s container traffic consists of international cargo.
TPKS recently bought and had installed nine new ARTGs from Konecranes. The cranes use an advanced automation platform, including fully automated stacking in the yard.
The automated RTG system is built around Konecranes’ 16-wheel RTG.
With its “holistic design” and tolerance for local variations, Konecranes says the crane was ideal for automation.
“The Konecranes 16-wheel RTG is ideally suited to automation and provides an example of how to design for widely applicable future benefits,” Konecranes Port Services regional director Jukka Tukia said.
“Not only can the crane be installed in its automated ARTG form, but also existing versions of the widely used 16-wheel RTG can be readily retrofitted. You can start with your current yard infrastructure as you move to fully automated RTG operation – step by step, block by block, to a fully automated yard.”
Konecranes marketing director port solutions Thomas Gylling said automation technology represented a turning point.
“We can now automate all our RTG’s. Even the oldest models,” he said.
“The RTG is a great machine, but it’s more than just a machine. It is a system. It is a new category of container handling.”
