South African Bulk Terminals (SABT) has installed a 140-metre cable-management system on two ship loaders at the Port of Durban to improve safety and reduce delays during vessel loading operations.
SABT, a business unit of BidFreight, said the system managed the 11kV power supply as well as control and fibre-optic cables used to operate the ship loaders. The installation replaces a legacy system that required workers to manually monitor the movement of high-tension cables during operations.
The previous system required one worker to open covers and monitor the cable while another operated the machine from a separate control position, SABT’s Houzair Dawood said. “It was a legacy system and was no longer efficient and was not as safe as it should have been.”
The main operational benefit is quicker repositioning of the ship loaders, which has a direct effect on vessel turnaround times. “Faster repositioning of ship loaders translates directly into improved vessel turnaround times,” he said.
The new system guides and supports the cables along the ship loader’s 140m travel path, instead of allowing them to drag across walkways. “Energy chains are like moving conduits and, instead of dragging across walkways as the old system did, the cables are protected, guided and supported throughout the ship loader’s travel path,” Dawood said.
The use of fibre-optic and control cables has also allowed SABT to add CCTV monitoring to the ship loaders. The cameras are used for visual checks, confirmation and record keeping during loading operations.
Igus technical sales consultant Vishay Sudamma said the Durban installation had been designed to reduce pulling and pushing forces on the cables, extend the operating life of the system and allow additional cables or infrastructure to be added if required.
The change had simplified the process of starting up the ship loader, said Igus managing director Ian Hewat. “Previously, if you wanted to start the machine, you had to get people on various posts to oversee the cable. Now you put on the siren, press go and within 30 seconds or so, the machine is operational.”
