Quay crane boom anti-collision systems could save millions.

The TT Club says it has received over one hundred claims in the last two years resulting from the booms of quayside cranes hitting vessels. These collisions vary from minor impacts with the vessel bridge, to one incident which caused around US$2m worth of cost by the combination of damage to the crane boom itself and the vessel’s crane, as well as major business interruption due to the quayside crane being out of service for six months.

The total cost of claims of this nature reviewed by the Club was in excess of US$12m. This figure reflects just the physical damage aspects and does not account for the significant injuries that are often occasioned. And, as with all claims incidents, the true cost to operations is far higher due to operational downtime and ancillary costs, including such things as management time diverted from other priorities and the need to keep customers onside.

The TT Club’s latest analysis of claims shows this sort of accident continues to be common at many terminals around the world. Laurence Jones, the TT Club’s Director Global Risk Assessment, says that all quayside cranes are at risk, including those involved in container, bulk and general cargo operations.