Propeller shipped on time to South Korea

As beautiful as an oversized flower – but its loading means hard work: A ship's propeller weighing 68.4 tons had to be shipped to South Korea by ocean-going vessel at the end of March. The project logistics experts from a. hartrodt took over the heavy cargo at the berth in the Port of Hamburg. The manufacturer had arranged the pre-transport from Waren (Mueritz) by himself. Gerd Illing, Head of Projects at a. hartrodt in Hamburg, describes the punctual delivery to the shipyard in South Korea as a particular challenge: "New ships have tightly scheduled production deadlines and don't wait for us."

Successful despite tense loading situation

The project department of a. hartrodt Hamburg with five employees successfully faced the tense loading situation in the worldwide shipping industry with massive delays or blank sailings. "We have already shipped a first propeller from Hamburg to Busan in February. Also this time, we booked space on a container vessel for the breakbulk cargo at an early stage," says Illing.

Floating cranes load onto vessel with millimeter precision

Propellers are loaded by floating crane in the Port of Hamburg. This ensures horizontal load guidance and millimeter-precise steering of the cargo – and so the 9.60 by 9.60 by 2.10 meter propeller made of cast copper alloy "floated" onto the ocean-going vessel. Together with a 1.5-ton accessory box, the cargo was heaved on board and secured. Illing is in constant communication with his colleagues in the Korean Port of Busan, where the ship is scheduled for arrival at the end of April. "The heavy-lift cargo will first go ashore and then be loaded onto a barge from the shipyard," he explains.

The propeller is needed for a new 13,000 TEU vessel. It takes around three years for a ship to be completed. According to Germany Trade & Invest, South Korean shipyards received orders to build ships over 17.4 million compensated gross tons in 2021.

A video of the loading with very impressive pictures please find here