Review nr 1. 2003 - TTS Group ASA

12 TTS Review June 2003
TTS Ships Equipment’s IPSI
and INTEGRATION projects lead to designs
for enhanced ro-ro cargo handling operations
Gothenburg-based TTS Ships Equipment AB,
the ro-ro access equipment ‘Centre of
Excellence’ within the TTS Marine group of
companies, has been a pioneer in the
development of new cargo handling systems
for ro-ro vessels over the years.
The company has been heavily involved in two EUsponsored
projects, IPSI (Improved Port Ship Interface)
and INTEGRATION, both designed to provide Europe
with economic short sea ro-ro door-to-door operations.
IPSI, which ran between 1996 and 1999, was a
revolutionary feasibility project in intermodal transport designed
to ease traffic congestion and improve safety on the roads of Europe
by moving freight onto ships or inland waterways craft.TTS Ships
Equipment led the consortium developing this project.The follow-up
project, INTEGRATION, takes all of the lessons learned from IPSI
and integrates them into a ‘real demonstration’ project to develop an
economic door-to-door short sea shipping service utilising the ro-ro
concept.This means developing new ro-ro designs, cargo handling
systems and integrated ship-shore techniques.
In INTEGRATION,TTS Ships Equipment has been tasked with
demonstrating cargo handling systems to enhance efficient
port/terminal operations. Both projects involve:
• Developing new concepts for flexible and efficient interfaces
between land and waterborne means of transport
• Developing methods and equipment for the effective transfer
of cargo and information about cargo with the focus on high
efficiency and low investment
• Demonstrating the port/ship interface concept to verify the
effectiveness of intermodal cargo exchange in a ‘door-todoor’
context
The latest innovation from these programmes is a new design of
ro-ro trailer trestle with built in cargo lashing system.The IPSI Trailer
Trestles offer both ship owner and port operators major advances in
reducing vessel turnaround times, improved safety and important
savings in the manpower requirements for handling a ro-ro equipped
with these trestles.
Several prototypes of the new trestle have been produced and
tested in full scale operation aboard a number of freight ro-ros in
service in Northern Europe.The trestle has been type approved by
DNV in 2002 for a 36 ton trailer with a maximum of 20 tons on the
king-pin.
Why is this development so important? When handling trailers in
short sea ro-ro operations, the trestle is a major component in the
cargo securing system. By using the IPSI Trailer Trestle, the number
of securing points is significantly reduced, and in certain
circumstances even removed, without impacting on the safety of the
cargo, crew or ship.
The manpower required for conventional lashing of trailers on a
typical North Sea freight ro-ro is 32, however utilising the IPSI Trailer
Trestle system this figure is significantly reduced to just 10! With the
high cost of port workers in Northern Europe and seamen, the
financial savings are considerable.
The IPSI Trailer Trestle is of steel construction with a built-in
standard ‘fifth wheel’ on top of a standard 2-inch king-pin underneath.
In each leg the web lashing is stowed and in the foot a specially
designed rubber pad is fitted, to obtain the highest possible friction
against the ship’s deck.
The Swedish Maritime Institute has recently approved the new
trestle and wheel-end design for use with reduced lashing onboard
the ro-ro Stena Freighter, which operates on the route between
Gothenburg (Sweden) and Kiel (Germany).
With its extensive experience in the design of modern ro-ro
vessels and cargo handling equipment,TTS Ships Equipment is
helping Europe lead the way in economic short-sea ro-ro door-to-door
operations.