The Art of Project Cargoes
Heavy equipment and project cargoes make excellent photographs and images of them often grace shipping publications. Putting together the logistics for an international door-to-door move of a large truck or military tank or boat certainly gets the adrenaline going – because of the stakes involved. Due to the nature of the risks, careful planning with good information and reliable partners will avoid hair-raising misadventures. Our company has become increasingly involved in ‘project cargoes’, as they are often called in the trade. I thought it would be opportune to share some of our experience in this art.
Snapshots: By ship side, taking a deep breath as a container gantry operator gingerly lifts a 62-MT piece off with a newly-designed lifting bar that came with the ship. Counting the hours while trucking an ever-weightier military tank through the ice-storm of ’98, weigh stations ahead. Standing on the quay, in all weather, at a remote port, cellphone in hand, finally confirming to the client the unit is safely stowed, as the stevedores lash it on deck, last piece on.
The Unit: At the outset it is fundamental to get accurate specs of the equipment, such as weights, dims and special features such as sensitive or fragile parts. On a first move, securing a schematic diagram of the unit, with clearly marked centre of gravity and lifting points, is very important, to pass on to partners who will be committed to its careful handling. Has the unit adequate fittings for a sea voyage or has it been constructed with only domestic overland transport in mind? Special welding to modify the piece on the quay can get pricey and will be worrying to all parties involved in the move.
The Transport Chain: Tied tightly to the nature of the equipment at issue is the most appropriate routing and best means of transport. At times the complexity of the steps in a door-to-door move is akin to an obstacle course: but the voyage must not commence before the path is clear. The successful move is based on a clear conception from the start of how to make it happen, of all the myriad steps and special touches required. A grasp of local conditions along the way is essential. Central also are, throughout, clear communications with the shipper and importer. Another absolute must: clear instructions to (and at times from!) competent truckers or the railroad, the port of loading stevedores, the steamship agents, perhaps also their principals, and overseas partners in communication with their stevedores, agents and oncarriers.
Project vs. container movements: The key differences between heavy equipment cargoes and 20’ and 40’ container shipments in our experience are considerable. The expertise of local marine surveyors should be drawn upon at key points such as at ports of loading or discharge, where one has reason to believe it is needed. This is a judgment call in each instance; we have found the information that the marine surveyors supply in advance, and also during an operation, often exceptionally valuable.
Do the stevedores have enough to work with? Do they have enough information? Is the centre of gravity clearly marked? Is the appropriate means of lifting the unit apparent? Should the loading or discharge be infuriatingly slow, was this not inevitable given ‘what the stevedores had to work with’? And in this trade time is money. Difficulty in loading heavy units can cause delays and hence considerable waiting time bills from trucking firms, ‘deadtime’ from stevedores, even demurrage from ships. With heavy equipment moves one wants to walk through the operation carefully in advance with a competent stevedore; such a close liaison almost never is needed in the container filed. This ‘goal-setting’ is also a way to ensure the best stevedoring supervision during the load or discharge.
Points to keep in mind: A few chestnuts and these are in no particular order. The ship’s master can in the end decline to load the unit, despite all previous assurances, because of concerns he may have about the inherent vices or security of the piece. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) may take an interest in the amount of foreign matter, such as mud, which has clung to heavy units being imported, and requires that it be removed. Car inspectors for the railway are often very meticulous in how units must be tied down on the railway’s cars before they are ‘signed off’, i.e. accepted for inland transport. Heavy units can come loose enroute unless they are well chained down. This extra effort in securing generally costs money, but can be planned for and often mitigated.
To achieve excellence: It may have seemed cutesy to call this trade an art - - but really anything where excellence is possible can be seen as an art. What is excellence in heavy equipment transport? In my view it involves at least the following service principles. In assuming over-all responsibility for the door-to-door movement, one must be naturally pro-active, and, as it were, push the heavy equipment along the transport chain, handling obstacles as they arise. One must maintain hands-on management.
One must remember the times of crucial transition points in the shipment, calling ahead to ensure commitments made are being kept. By this means, because one is involved throughout, one can also pick up info on causes of possible delays, react quickly, and avoid increased costs. Lastly and also of primary importance, the shipper and importer want to be kept informed of the progress of the shipment in a timely and accurate fashion, including news of the occasional blips and delays and corrective action taken - - because they too must keep their commitments. The basis of the contract is, after all, trust.
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