Starting 1 July, Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) regulations require a verified gross mass for every container before being loaded on board a sea going ship. Several manufacturers have come up with weighing solutions that do not disrupt or complicate handling processes
From now on, shippers are required to provide carriers with a Verified Gross Mass (VGM) for each laden container before[ds_preview] it can be loaded onto a vessel. The stricter measures are intended to prevent accidents caused by overload and by an unfavorable weight distribution when stowing the boxes on board the vessels. In the past, mis-declarations of weight of containers have caused a lot of incidents.
To comply with this new requirements that came into force on 1 July 2016 there are different ways and systems on the market. The weighing of boxes also was an important aspect of this year’s TOC Europe fair in Hamburg from 14 to 16 June. About 200 exhibitors were attending the event. The exhibitors showed different possibilities to deal with the new requirements.
Intercomp focusses on Weigh-in-Motion (WIM) Strip Scales. The US based company chose a solution which uses sensors that are installed in the asphalt or concrete at the entry and exit points of ports, rail and freight yards. The scales should replace large in-ground stationary static scales which could be a source of bottlenecks for gate operators and roadway freight companies. According to Intercomp the 75mm wide strip sensors could be installed within a single day for WIM operation across a wide speed range. The strain gauge technology provides data including axle and gross vehicle wheights to the CPU. That should help to indicate vehicle and cargo weights, to flag overweights and to create vehicle reports including weight data. The data would be processed and integrated into the gate software via ethernet output.
Weighing while handling
Strainstall has chosen another way to verify the weights of containers. The so called Container Weight System (CWS) could be retrofitted into the spreader headblock or at the twistlock. Alternatively the twistlocks themselves can be replaced if 20-foot twinlift spreaders are used. So the weight is obtained during the course of ongoing lifting operations. Four compression load cells are used in the ground based weighing system. Diffenrent configurations are available. Load sensing is possible via twistlocks, annular cells or load pins. According to the company the advantages of spreader based weighing solutions are that they have zero time and operational impact on existing terminal operations. There would be no need to implement separate lift and drop steps or more complex weighbridge based processes. DP World Southampton has fitted out its straddle carrier fleet with Strainstall’s CWS. By installing a container weighing system on site, any potential issues of containers being stranded at the terminal can beavoided.
Konecranes have worked on a container weighing system as well. The solution of the Finnish company is called Static Weighing System and allows reachstackers to hydraulically measure the weight of the lifted box with 1% full scale accuracy in less than five seconds. The system can interchange data seamlessly with other systems via two different solutions – in-cab connectivity or the YourKonecranes cloud service. When the container is lifted in transport position and held still, the driver can initiate the weighing process from the truck’s multi-touch control display inside the cabin. After that, the VGM of the container is sent to the in-cab modem which communicates with other system devices and services.
Another possibility is the aforementioned YourKonecranes cloud. This is a secure, cloud based service that enables seamless integration between the weighing system and the TOS/TMS or ERP system. The information transferred through the service includes VGM of the container, the ID, Time/date stamp and the name of the person that is accountable for weight verification.
TWG
