misinformation

Rhenus Bulktec for containersRhenus Logistics in Germanyis offering an application calledBulktec as a way of transportinga range of dry bulk commoditiesin standard steel containersinstead of having to use moreexpensive dedicated bulk containers.The Bulktec system comprisesa plastic coated liner bag,into which the cargo is loadedfrom a silo with an air blower.At the discharge point, the processis reversed. The system isclaimed to be particularly suitablefor bulk cargo that creates alot of dust and/or has poor freeflowingcharacteristics. Typicalexamples are paint pigments,cereals, sugar, cement, fertilisersand dry fuels. The (un)loadingprocess is said to take around 30minutes.“The real secret behind thisnew technique is the significantlyhigher utilisation of loadcarryingcapacity,” said GeorgFank, managing director of adedicated new division of RhenusLogistics, Rhenus BulktecSelf-lifting containersAlberta, Canada-based ExcaliburShelters has launched anew “self-lifting container”.Director Douglas Duncan saidfinding an efficient way to movecontainers in remote locations,like oil fields and disaster areaswhere cranes are not available,is a key challenge Excaliburset out to address when designingits self-lifting concept.The SL-Tainer is raised withfour in-built hydraulic legs. Thelifting system fits within thestandard ISO footprint, so thecontainer can be transported as anormal ISO box. The legs extendoutwards from the container toprovide an inside clearance widthof 3.138m for truck loading.GmbH. “Using 20ft or 40ft containersenables us to combine awide variety of cargo shipmentsand this reduces transport costssignificantly.”As an example, said Fank,based on an average bulk cargoweight, it is possible to reducethe costs by one third for transportinggoods from the Rhine-Neckar region to the Helsinkiregion in Finland, compared toa 40ft container using big bags.The savings are even higher incomparison with silo trucks.The cranes can lift around30t to a height of 1.6m and arecontrolled manually or with anoptional self-levelling system.They are powered either fromthe truck PTO or with a separatepower pack, with a 9 kWmotor and a two-speed hydraulicsystem. Excalibur has patentson a range of other concepts,including a “Tri-Tainer” systemthat expands out of a 20ft or 40ftcontainer to provide a shelter.New tankfrom HoyerGermany’s Hoyer has launcheda new mini tank with an operatingpressure of up to 6.67 barfor transporting hazardous goods.“By adding these containers ofthe type UN T 22 to its repertoire,Hoyer is augmenting itsown intermediate-bulk-container(IBC) fleet with a variant thatmakes high operating pressurelevels of up to 6.67 bar possible,and thereby corresponds to themaximum safety requirements,”the company stated.With a holding capacity of1,100 litres, the containers are designedfor the storage and transportof smaller product volumes underconditions of overpressure. “Withthese new mini tanks, we haveagain succeeded in expanding ourutilisation spectrum,” said UweBartels, European sales managerIBC logistics at Hoyer. “They willfurther enhance our worldwidecommitment in the transportationof hazardous goods, for exampletoxic substances of the class 6.1.”The APC rack referred to onpage one of this issue is an importantfactor in the cost ofgetting Chinese 53ft containersinto the US. Initially these containerswere shipped on charteredbreakbulk vessels, at a costof up to US$1,000 each. Usingthe racks to load them on regularcontainer services, US containerowners have been able toget their boxes to the US WestCoast full of import cargo andactually earn revenue on delivery.It is not known how the casewill affect QPCL’s 53ft containerbusiness. There are around600-700 APC racks in service,of which CIMC believesaround 200 units were suppliedby QPCL. The China SupremeCourt has ordered QPCL toCONTAINER INDUSTRY NEWSItaly’s Sicom at 40Typical Sicom container-type steel swap body for Italian intermodal specialistAmbrogioSicom SpA, the Italy-basedmanufacturer of containers andswap bodies, has celebrated its40th anniversary in the business,a remarkable achievement givenhow container manufacturing inEurope generally is very much athing of the past.“We are unique in the market,which is dominated by Chinesefirms that for many years havehad the advantage of low labourcosts,” said Sicom’s sales andmarketing director Silvio Alfero.“We design and manufacture inItaly everything that we sell, inspite of the pitiless competition.Our motto is flexibility.” Alferounderlined the point that at notime during or since the 2008-09financial crisis has Sicom ended ayear “in the red”.Last year the company turnedout 5,000 containers and swapbodies and achieved sales of €24M.Only 10% of customers were Italian,the rest being mainly in Germany,followed by France andelsewhere in Northern Europe.Sicom started out in 1975 asa producer of ISO containers forthe local Italian market. Overtime it expanded and diversifiedits range, which now containsaround 50 steel container typesand designs, sold to internationalshipping companies, containerlessors, intermodal operatorsand road hauliers. The plant sitein Cherasco (Cuneo) occupies13-ha and has its own rail siding,while the factory has three productionlines.Production includes 20ft and40ft open tops, dry vans, flatracks,ventilated containers, bulkcontainers, curtainside containersand swap bodies. Mobile shelters,fitted offices and temporaryhomes are also produced.“In the first few months ofthis year, we witnessed a strongincrease in demand, but the markethas slowed down again,” saidAlfero. However, there is an underlyingstrength to the intermodalmarket, not least because bulkcontainers, which provide operatorswith flexible distributionoptions, are replacing older bulkwagons as the latter reach the endof their working life.CIMC wins legal battlecease producing its version andto compensate CIMC for economiclosses.For CIMC, the case is importantrecognition of the valueof the patent process. It spendsRMB4M-5M per year on patentapplications and maintenancefees for over 3,500 patents,1,600 of which relate tocontainer technology. “As aleader of container industry,CIMC always pays attention tointellectual property,” said WangYu, general manager, legal affairsat CIMC. “The main purpose,”he added, is to “construct an environmentof good market competitionto advocate the respectof technical progress and intellectualproperty and to promotethe healthy development of thecontainer industry”.WEW special for DowGermany’s WEW WesterwälderEisenwerk GmbH, a specialisttank container manufacturer,has developed a 5,000-litre tankin an “ISO style” frame to transportcatalyst for Dow Chemical.“WEW worked closely withus in designing the solution fortransporting the catalyst,” saidGastón Garayzar from DowChemicals. “It was very mucha partnership between the twocompanies, which has resulted ina tank very much fit for purpose.”Dr Ulrich Bernhardt, managingdirector of WEW, commented:“Dow quite rightly demandeda very high level qualitytransport solution which met orexceeded international transportrequirements. Our in-depth experienceof these enabled us toprovide them with a solution totheir requirement.”The 5 m 3 units have been designedto fully meet the ATEXrequirements. WEW cooperatedwith its suppliers to source theright agitators and valves beforeintegrating the components intothe tank, manufactured at thecompany’s facility in Weitefeld,Germany. The units measure 10ftlong, 8ft 6in high and 8ft wide.WEW developed the specialist tankfor Dow Chemical18June 2015