Navis automates 31 cranes at FICT in Tianjin Port

Navis has completed the automation of 31 rail-mounted gantry (ARMG) cranes at Five Continents International Container Terminal (FICT), which are now live on N4 and operational at Tianjin Port.

FICT was designed with an initial design capacity of 1.5m teu but the rise of megaships and the increasing volume of cargo that accompanies them means that the terminal is operating at its maximum capacity and often beyond it.

In order to increase the capacity and efficiency of the terminal, FICT launched a project to modernise its yard – automating its fleet of 31 manually operated rail-mounted stacking cranes.

Song Tianwei, general manager at FICT, said: “Sitting in one of the busiest ports in the world, FICT handles an extraordinary volume of cargo and we quickly realized the value that modernizing our yard operations would bring to our customers, processing their containers in the most timely and efficient manner possible.

“We completed the automation process in record time and expect to see significant gains in efficiency, which in turn will open up our capacity and allow us to serve more customers.”

Navis’s N4 software directs the crane operations and optimises the sequence of work orders. Among the tasks managed by N4 are the yard planning, vessel planning, ARMG scheduling and dispatching and prime mover/tractor-trailer scheduling and dispatching.

Following the upgrade to the equipment and software at the end of April 2019, the cranes at FICT now deliver a consistent performance of 30 moves per hour, increasing the terminal’s overall capacity by more than 10%.

Mark Welles, vice president and general manager Asia Pacific at Navis, said: “Today’s modern terminals must operate at peak productivity and efficiency on a consistent basis. FICT identified an area for improvement and with N4 Expert Decking and Primeroute, we have optimised the stowage of containers in the yard and matched productivity with the increased capacity.”