Soccer stadium kick-starts growth for abnormal transport specialist

AS SOUTH Africa gears up for the 2010 Soccer World Cup, construction of new stadia along with other infrastructural improvements have seen a significant increase in the import of specialised equipment and materials, according to Dennis Visser, MD of abnormal transport company, Natro Freight. For example, out of a scheduled total of eleven shipments, Natro has completed five cargo movements for Durban’s new soccer stadium. These five shipments consisted of 25 pieces being used to construct the arch across the new Moses Mabidha stadium. “Taking a look at the southern part of the stadium, you could see two white columns standing at a 45-degree angle,” said Visser. “These columns were being constructed from the pieces that Natro Freight had been transporting.” The heaviest section being transported was 115-tons in weight, and the longest a 35-metre piece. With those sorts of dimensions all these loads were abnormal in size – and every vehicle had to be escorted under Metro police escorts. They were soon followed by a further four pieces, due in the Port of Durban aboard the Golden Isle in mid-May. But these are only a part of the huge expansion in project cargo moving in, out and around SA, Visser added. “As a company that specialises in abnormal transport, project work in general is taking up more and more of our time,” he told FTW. “A large number of engineering companies are producing work that has to be exported or moved to various clients – all pieces that are abnormal, and transported from all over SA to local ports and different areas of the country and neighbouring states.” Handling these breakbulk abnormal cargo loads requires specialist knowledge and expertise, not only in terms of meeting dimension and weight elements, but also in adjusting transport methods and using the correct specialised trailers to minimise risk of damage to the machines. Visser said that transport solutions for such cargo had steadily evolved in the 26 years that the company had been operating in the breakbulk, abnormal and project cargo field. Natro is also now being called on to handle more and more elements of cargo handling and delivery. “In the past we were provided with shipment details and proceeded from there,” said Visser. “We are now increasingly being involved in projects from the design stage, through logistics planning, to on-site and construction planning," said Visser.