LINX Port Services’ innovative Mobile Hopper System wins industry award

LINX Port Services has received a highly commended certificate for the Excellence in Bulk Logistics or Heavy Lift Handling Award, as part of the delayed yet virtual, 2020 DCN Australian Shipping and Maritime Industry Awards.

Announced today as part of the Daily Cargo News’ annual awards ceremony, LINX Port Services’ deployment of a new Mobile Hopper System (MHS), which was developed in collaboration with specialist equipment supplier, Mobile Conveying Services (MCS), received widespread praise.

LINX Port Services Executive General Manager, Vince Trotter, said while being named a finalist was exciting, the certificate is important recognition of all the people at the helm of the project’s success.

“We place a great onus on challenging ourselves as a business to do better and find better outcomes for our customers. And while we don’t do it for the awards, this is an important moment that validates the work of our people and partners, and the collaborative relationships we have with the port industry’s supply chain,” said Mr Trotter.

LINX Port Services, General Manager Commercial and Customer, Tony Gregory, added the success of the MHS in providing an outstanding solution for bulk cargo handling in a port-to-port or multiple berth scenarios, shows there is strong potential for the solution and LINX Port Services, along with MCS, is well placed to support the industry into the future.

“This new MHS is a deliberate step away from a fixed-asset approach which importantly brings significant advantages particularly in safety, mobility, and product handling capability. With this flexibility, without compromise, customers are presented with a scalable and agile offering,” said Mr Gregory.

MHS key features:

• Handles product densities from 0.3 to 3.0 tonnes/cubic metre.
• Batch Weighs loads directly into trucks via the conveyor.
• Weigher is positioned under the belt.
• Operated by radio remote control.
• Tug Tractor is used for moving the trailer on sites with limited space for manoeuvring.
• Can be transferred to other ports with Pilot.

For our customer BlueScope Steel, the MHS is regularly dispatched where required at our Port Kembla operational site, handling bulk cargo previously not able to be discharged at their two predominately steel products dedicated berths. The equipment shows its versatility by being available on-call and able to pre-set the tonnes to be loaded into trucks. The MHS has also been further adapted to accommodate scrap shred steel to reduce the need to double handle product with Front End Loaders, further improving safety and productivity.