Kalmar doubles its sales of terminal tractors

Mark Williamson, president EMEA region at Kalmar, said: “We have witnessed a significant change in the market as products designed for specific applications have been introduced. … Our purpose-built TT612d distribution tractor has quickly become established as the machine of choice for distribution centre operations (in the Netherlands and the UK) and across Europe.”

The company’s Ottawa terminal tractors are becoming increasingly popular in the Middle East and Africa. For example, in November it won a contract to supply 42 Ottawa 4×2 terminal tractors to the Port of Salalah in Oman, with delivery scheduled by the end of this year.

Salalah, one of the fastest-growing terminals in the region, is undertaking a major expansion project. This is expected to be complete by the end of 2011 and will increase capacity to 9m teu per year. The Ottawa terminal tractors will service the quayside operation with post-Panamax gantry cranes.

Graham Boxall, sales director for the Middle East Region, Kalmar Industries, said: “Kalmar’s decision to open a regional office in Dubai this year to provide closer customer support is bearing good results. We are physically much closer now to our customers.”

Kalmar has also won an order for eight of its E-One+ rubber-tyred gantry cranes from Kumport Liman Hizmetleri ve Lojistik A.Åž. in Turkey, for the expansion of Kumport port. The RTGs will be delivered in August 2009, and will feature Kalmar’s Smartrail autosteering and container position verification systems and variable speed generators to improve fuel economy.

They will join four existing RTGs and other Kalmar equipment at Kumport, which is the third largest port in Turkey. Located on the European side of Istanbul on the Marmara Sea coast, it currently handles 750,000 teu per year and estimates that within five years it will be able to double that amount.