DAVAO CITY – Bad luck failed on August Friday the 13th at least for the Davao Port, also known as Sasa Wharf, as three (3) Rubber Tyred Gantry (RTG) cranes arrived here that day after decades of waiting.
After a few hours of delay due to minor repairs at the anchorage, a Module Vessel Carrier (MVC) MV Yamatai of Panaman registry operated by NYK Line carrying the RTGs reached Berth 6 and 7 at 12 noon on the same day. The RTGs were finally rolled out to the port quay by midnight.
RTGs are the fulfilment of contract commitments based on the Business Plan of Cargo Handling Operator (CHO) Davao Integrated Port and Stevedoring Services Corp. (DIPSSCOR) once it reaches 150,000 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) to raise the labor productivity level of the port.
“The PPA management, in behalf of its stakeholders, is very pleased to share this positive update because this is the realization of attempts to modernize and automate container handling in Sasa Wharf,” Port District Manager Abdussabor Sawadjaan announced.
PPA earlier drafted its vision: “By 2010, PPA shall have met international standards in port facilities and services in at least 10 ports nationwide.” Davao Port is among the first 10 shortlisted priority ports for development and modernization.
Sawadjaan, a passionate advocate for the installation of these cranes particularly for the past decade, also expressed relief that the long wait is finally over, especially after a series of technical spats on its ideal location at the port and the wharf’s structural design.
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Sasa Wharf is the busiest among the SoMin ports in terms of container handling because of the bulk of banana exports pass through it.
With the RTGs’ operations, DIPSSCOR is projecting an increase in the storage/stacking capacity of 50,000 TEUs of the port which will directly address the limited designated container yard space.
The RTGs’ primarily function is stacking of intermodal containers at terminals or yards. It is also considered as a mobile type of crane which can be positioned where container handling is focal, used to maximize storage density, and to hasten movements of trucks used for loading and unloading on the quay side.
Davao Port remains as the top four in terms of TEUs handled nationwide and the only port outside of Metro Manila to be included in the category - a testament of its high level of exports, particularly of fresh fruits.
DIPSSCOR, a sister company of the International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) operating in the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT), obtained the second-hand RTGs from the latter.
According to Sanieto Sebellino, DIPSSCOR Operations Manager, each of the three RTGs weighs 140 tons and has a lifting and moving capacity of 40 tons.
The RTGs will be placed in the container yard near Berths 6 and 7 where majority of loading and unloading of refrigerated vans are concentrated and the area most suitable to support their respective weights based on structural engineering studies, Sanieto revealed.
What the Davao Port is ultimately anticipating is the installation of Ship-To-Shore Cranes (STSCs) which would make it competitive with foreign counterparts in terms of labor productivity. With the STSCs, its loading and unloading capacity, now registering only 17 to 20 Net Gang/Hour (NGH), is expected to rise to an average of 30 NGH just like ports in more developed countries.
(L) RTGs Arrive In Sasa Wharf on Friday the 13th; (T) Port Workers Them Onboard Upon Arrival; (R) RTGs Begin Working on Container Yard Near Berths and 7
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