Local stevedores Australian Marshalling Services successfully discharged Boco Rock windfarm components from the Lucas Oldendorff late last week, completing the work on Sunday morning at 10am.
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AMS operations manager Dave Staight said that, while it was a difficult job, the local stevedores met, and may have exceeded, acceptable unloading rates.
Click on the photo above to view a gallery of Mr Staight's images from the discharge.
“It was a good result,” he said.
“It was a difficult discharge, because it’s a different type of vessel.
“Once we were in the hold, because the ship is a logger with an under-run, there was very little room to lift the tower sections, turn them around and get them out.
“We only had about half a metre to spare to manoeuvre the tower sections.”
It had been AMS’ intention to run both day and night shifts, offering up to 24 local stevedores shifts, but in the end the operation involved 12 to 18 local stevedores on a day shift only.
“The shore captain from Oldendorff in charge of the whole operation was very pleased.
“It was timely, a comparable rate of discharge with any stevedore operation anywhere, so it was good for them commercially,” Mr Staight added.
The successful discharge of these windfarm components means AMS now has a proven track record unloading project cargo, expanding the types of jobs they can put their hands up for in future.
This includes more offloads of Boco Rock Wind Farm components with the next two ships, the AAL Gladstone and Tiberborg, due on June 19 and July 16 respectively.
“Now we can prove we can do project cargo, heavy lift, two cranes; all that type of stuff,” Mr Staight said.
“We can do it in a timely manner, so it puts runs on the board for us.
“That’s really what you need and it’s broken the ice.
“And it’s good for Eden; the local blokes spend their money locally.”
AMS has put in for further wind farm component discharge contracts.