UK - Anyone who travels regularly on Britain’s roads, particularly in the vicinity of the major container ports, will be familiar with the blue and white livery of Maritime Transport which shifts an average of over 10 loads a week on each of its 1,500 road haulage vehicles. The multimodal logistics group has grown through acquisition with the purchase of DHL Container Logistics in 2010 followed by the takeover of Roadways Container Logistics four years later making the company, formed after the buy-out of Maritime Haulage in 2001, the largest container transport group in the country.

The Roadways deal saw Maritime responsible for three more container handling depots together with personnel and equipment. To cope with increased volumes through the new Leeds facility, the company recently needed new equipment that would withstand the arduous empty handling environment and therefore turned to its preferred materials handling partner, Cooper Specialised Handling.

The result of discussions was investment in a SANY SDCY100K6G double box container handler, the latest generation of SANY's empty container handlers and the first to go into service in the UK, at the operation in Leeds. Manufactured in Germany, the SANY 7 high double box container features a custom paint finish and has been specified with Valu+ options, a series of traditional extras totalling more than 70,000 Euros which are included in the basic price. Maritime's Area Manager Ryan Rhodes said:

"We're really pleased with the SANY container handler. Our container terminal here in Leeds continues to go from strength to strength and the new lifter has already had a brilliant impact on the business now that we are able to lift and move two containers at a time."

Unlike the traditional approach, which is to adapt the design of a 25 tonne forklift truck, SANY's empty container handler is designed around a 30 tonne machine to increase stability and strength. As a result, the driver is able to make full use of extremely quick lift speeds without jeopardising the life of the machine. Chris Barnes, General Manager at Cooper Specialised Handling, commented:

"Empty handling is probably the single most difficult application in container handling, especially double box handling, so it's vital to deploy equipment that is built to withstand the challenge. As the top machine supplier across Asia, SANY understands this marketplace and it is no coincidence that the empty container handler range is one of its top sellers."

Headquartered in Changsha, Hunan Province, China, SANY is the sixth-largest heavy equipment manufacturer in the world producing a range of equipment from concrete pumps to crawler cranes and a variety of gantry and ship to shore cranes and other container moving machinery. Cooper Specialised Handling director David Cooper added:

"We've been supplying reach stackers and forklifts since becoming SANY's exclusive UK distributor in 2015 and are thrilled to secure this new deal with Maritime, which has been one of our most prestigious customers during the past six years. SANY has strong design and manufacturing principles, which makes its machines a perfect fit for Maritime's busy Leeds depot, where driver comfort and safety, as well as productivity, are paramount. We are confident that the first of SANY's new generation of empty container handlers to go into service in the UK will help to showcase the brands credentials."