Leading container port is thinking outside the box


By David Ralph, Chief Executive, Haven Gateway

‘Felixstowe: Contain Yourself’. So reads the slogan, alongside the image of a stack of shipping containers, on a T-shirt recently spotted at a trendy on-line clothing shop.

It’s good to know that Felixstowe, as the UK’s largest container port, is getting the recognition it deserves in the most unexpected places!

Containerisation, with its enormous efficiencies, has transformed the global economy over the past few decades. But this is still a world where one size most definitely doesn’t fit all. Not everything will slot into a nice, neat maritime box and, indeed, not everything that goes through Felixstowe is containerised.

Last month (August) was a case in point. Allseas Global Logistics, a specialist in heavy lift and project cargo, turned to Felixstowe when it was contracted to transport a consignment measuring up to 7 metres in height from Scotland to South Korea.

The cargo, involving cement house units and accessories for the offshore industry, was to be shipped out of Felixstowe on board the 9,310 teu Albert Maersk – but road transport from Scotland to Suffolk simply wasn’t possible, given the extreme size and weight of the units. The largest piece measured 4 x 5.9 x 7 metres and weighed 40 tonnes; the entire consignment added up to 174 tonnes and 526 cubic metres.

So, a unique transhipment operation took place. The cargo was transported by coastal barge from Aberdeen to Felixstowe, where it was transhipped across the quay and loaded on to the deepsea vessel.

Normally the cargo might have been routed via Antwerp or Rotterdam, explained Mark Binge, Allseas’ commercial manager. “We tried Felixstowe and they were absolutely brilliant at handling this cargo,” he said. “We will be looking to do this type of operation again via the port.”

Felixstowe has also welcomed another less than box-shaped arrival – Team New Zealand’s Volvo Open 70 yacht, on the deck of the Skagen Maersk.

The yacht’s one-month journey from Auckland involved transhipment at Malaysia for the voyage to Felixstowe. While at the Suffolk port, it was prepared for the round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race, which starts in Alicante, Spain, on October 29. The yacht is due to start a promotional tour from London this week (5 sept).

Although best known as a container port, Felixstowe regularly handles project cargoes and heavy lifts, said Hutchison Ports UK’s CEO, David Gledhill.

“We are continuing to expand the port, which gives us greater flexibility to berth vessels, and with enhanced new handling equipment with up to 100 tonne lift quay crane capacity, the port is keen to develop more out-of-gauge and project business which has previously been routed via the continent,” he said.

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