Container handling in confined spaces

Over 1,000 ISO freight containers from well-known shipping lines spread across tens of thousands of square metres – yet it is not a port. So what is it, then? It is the container depot of Bobe Speditions GmbH (Bobe) in Bad Salzuflen.

"From Eastern Westphalia to the whole world" has been Bobe Freight Forwarders' motto for over 90 years. Initially limited to local building material transport, the company’s operating radius and the goods it carried soon expanded. Today, the family-run business operates a modern fleet and transports not only pallets, crates and drums from A to B by road, but also entire machines. Equally important for Bobe is the transport of goods by water – using shipping containers. For over 20 years, the freight forwarder has been operating an efficient and robust container logistics network that connects seaports (such as Hamburg and Bremerhaven) with Eastern Westphalia via inland waterways and rail. Two sites play a key role here: the container depots in Minden and Bad Salzuflen, with a total area of 60,000 m².

The growth in freight container throughput demonstrates just how successful Bobe is. In 2009, the figure stood at 85,000 TEU. This figure has more than doubled to 190,000 TEU within 15 years. “We naturally benefit from Eastern Westphalia’s strong business environment, with its numerous small and large companies,” explains Christian Hansmann, manager of the Bobe depot. For explanation: 1 TEU is equivalent to a 20-foot ISO container and is an internationally standardised unit used to count ISO containers of various sizes. This is important when describing the cargo capacity of ships or the volume of cargo handled by terminals in container transport.

The BOBE container depot in Bad Salzuflen

Since 1989/90, Bobe has been operating a container depot in Bad Salzuflen – its first at the time. The depot, which is open five days a week, is a so-called empty container storage facility. At peak times, up to 1,200 empty ISO containers of various sizes are stored here awaiting their next assignments. Any necessary maintenance is also carried out regularly. To handle the containers, Bobe operates three forklift truck trucks in parallel, each with a load capacity of 22 tonnes. This ensures that containers of different sizes can be moved quickly and safely around the site. Container handling, however, is a specialised task. "Perhaps it’s even a bit outdated," says Christian Hansmann, "but our space constraints mean we have to pick up the containers from the front." And it’s been working for decades.

In preparation of purchasing a new lift truck, the logistics experts from Bad Salzuflen surveyed the market for heavy-duty lift trucks. For explanation: Bobe puts a new lift truck into service roughly every two years. At the same time, the oldest lift truck is taken out of service and sold. The second-oldest then becomes the standby lift truck. The majority of the newest lift trucks are subsequently put into service. "This is how we reduce downtime and repair costs," says Christian Hansmann, explaining the reasoning behind this approach.

KAUP & Kalmar at Bobe for the first time

Kalmar was one of the suppliers that Bobe contacted and ultimately commissioned to supply a new vehicle – a Kalmar DCG180-250 HD – for the first time. The Scandinavian manufacturer of various handling solutions for ports, terminals and distribution centres, for its part, has been working with KAUP for several years now. "We weren’t previously aware that KAUP manufactured container spreaders," says the Bobe depot manager, "as we’ve used other manufacturers up to now. But our gut feeling is right." And this applies not only to the spreader – known at KAUP as the End Side Spreader 25T193IL – but also to the lift truck. After all, both components – the complete lift truck-spreader combination – are new to Bobe. For Kalmar, the family-run haulage firm is also a new customer, as Kalmar’s regional sales manager, Marius Stelter, notes: "We’re just getting to know the customer, the environment and the specific application."

Speaking of applications: How is container handling carried out? At the Bobe depot, 20-foot, 40-foot and 45-foot ISO containers are stacked on top of one another on up to four levels. In order to pick up the containers to be moved, the lift truck approaches the relevant storage bay from the front and slowly lowers the front-end spreader onto the topmost container. The light on the spreader is red and changes to yellow when the twist locks engage with the corner castings. Once the twist locks have been locked into the corners, the light turns green; the container is secured and can be lifted from its position. It is then transported to its destination on the company premises. After disengaging, the pick-up process is carried out in reverse.

Before the handling operation could be fully implemented, minor adaptations had to be made to the spreader and lift truck on site in Bad Salzuflen. Nevertheless, Bobe is confident and satisfied with his new purchase. "We’re convinced we’ve made the right decision with KAUP and Kalmar," says Christian Hansmann, adding: "Now we need to put the whole package through its paces in day-to-day use!"