Kalmar to upgrade Le Havre cranes

In a release, parent firm Cargotec said that the Port of Le Havre cranes will be raised by 9 metres during the project — which will be planned, engineered and executed entirely by Kalmar.

The order was booked in Cargotec’s Q2 2018 order intake, with the project scheduled to begin in Q3 of this year.

The cranes are operated by Générale de Manutention Portuaire (GMP), a joint venture between DP World and Terminal Link (CMA CGM holds a majority stake in this latter company).

GMP’s Terminal de France terminal is expanding its capabilities and capacity to be able to handle the new mega container vessels operated by CMA CGM.

To make the ZPMC cranes taller, leg extensions will be inserted underneath the portal beams, with the lifting equipment jacked up during the upgrade work using Kalmar’s jacking towers and hydraulic jacks.

Commenting on the heightening contract, Guy Sansone, GMP technical director, said that the decision to partner with Kalmar was mainly made due to “their proven track record and the technical expertise of their dedicated crane upgrades team”.

“Extending the capabilities of our STS cranes through heightening will ensure we can continue to provide our customers with the best possible level of service regardless of how large their vessels are,” he said.

“We are delighted to be able to support DP World and CMA CGM in futureproofing their operations at Terminal de France ready for handling the next generation of mega-size vessels,” said Eduardo Prat, vice president for crane upgrades at Kalmar.

“Our track record and expertise in these kinds of crane heightening projects speaks for itself, and we are the only provider capable of completing the work in such a short timescale.”