Process for handling cargo and cargo handling facility

Abstract

A process for handling cargo which comprises the step of providing a cargo handling facility having a wharf defining a marine berth of sufficient length to accommodate the docking of a marine vessel in substantially parallel relation to a sidewall of the wharf. A shelter having a roof structure overlying the marine berth and an adjacent portion of the wharf is also provided, with one or more overhead lifting means mounted beneath the roof structure for movement over the marine berth and over the adjacent portion of the wharf in both transverse and parallel directions relative to the sidewall providing for movement of cargo by the overhead lifting means between the marine vessel and one or more exterior transport positions located on the wharf. The one or more exterior transport positions are also preferably located under the roof.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to the field of material handling, and more specifically, to a process for handling cargo and a cargo handling facility for use in such process. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Approximately ninety-five percent of world cargo volume moves by marine vessels. [0003] Historically, a large portion of sea cargo was breakbulk goods, namely, loose cargo, such as slings of bananas, or coils of steel, stowed directly in the hold of a ship. [0004] Conventionally, when the ship docked, a crew of stevedores supplied by a stevedoring firm stood ready to assist in the off-loading of the cargo. The off-loading commenced with the ship's crane, dockside gantry, or mobile crane supplied by the stevedoring firm or the port in question, being utilized to transfer the cargo from the ship's hold to a debarkation area on the dock defined by the reach of the crane(s). The stevedores thereafter moved such cargo by forklift from the debarkation a...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0011] It is an object of the present invention to provide for the handling of cargo, including but not limited to breakbulk cargo, in a manner that is relatively inexpensive compared to conventional methods of handling breakbulk cargo.

[0019] The location and the structure of the facility provides for an efficient and advantageous deployment of stevedore and warehouse labour, thereby to permit handling of cargo, including breakbulk cargo, in a manner that is relatively inexpensive as compared to conventional breakbulk cargo handling processes.

Problems solved by technology

This conventional method of ship unloading and loading is relatively slow, labour intensive, and costly.

Moreover, it is subject to weather delays, particularly in harsher climates.

However, containerization is not without its drawbacks.

As one such drawback, standard containers are typically engineered for loads up to 20 tons, whereas many discrete loads, such as steel coils, are in excess of that mass.

As another such drawback, the containers themselves represent a significant load, thereby reducing the transport capacity of the vessel.

Further, lakers, which carry the bulk of the cargo within the Great Lakes, are of a size and configuration which is not amenable to the large scale cartage of containers.

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