Höegh Autoliners has transported a 30 m-long rail transfer cart from Valencia, Spain to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on behalf of Sparber Group.
According to Höegh, the component was the longest unit loaded onboard a ro-ro vessel in Valencia. The unit was secured onto specialised roll trailers for the loading operation.
Before the unit could be rolled on to the Höegh Seoul, however, the shipping line used software to simulate the cargo loading and discharge scenarios in order to identify any potential risks.
Höegh’s port captain Roger Duran explained: “When creating the drawings on how to stuff the roll trailer, it became clear that there would be a considerable overhang and therefore a potential risk to hit the ramp during operations.”
The risk depended on the angle of the ramp and this can differ at load and discharge port, said Höegh, as the berth specifications can vary. To solve this challenge, the breakbulk operations team at Höegh calculated what the lowest ramp angle would be in both the load and the discharge ports.
“With this at hand, we could determine the necessary ground clearance for the overhanging section,” explained Duran.
As an extra precaution, Höegh added dunnage underneath the roll trailer when it passed over the critical section of the ramp. “Wooden blocks of specific strength and height were placed between the cargo and roll trailer to mitigate the risk and secure that we achieved the desired clearance,” added Duran.
After the loading operation, Höegh Seoul continued on its journey to Jeddah, where the rail transfer cart will be used to move trains and support the maintenance of the Haramain high speed-rail network in Saudi Arabia.
