Vado Gateway terminal launched to customers at key events

At a round of recent events and exhibitions, APM Terminals has confirmed to customers that its new Vado Gateway terminal, located in the Vado Ligure Port Complex, North Western Italy, will be inaugurated on 12 December this year.

With the placement of the terminal’s last caisson this week - an important milestone in the build - the commercial team have been actively engaging with the market. The launch commenced with an event at the Genoa Aquarium last month. Future services offered by the terminal were presented to key managers from the main Maritime Companies and Shipping Houses operating in the Italian market. 

APM Terminals Vado Ligure was also present at this year’s Transport & Logistics Exhibition and is the sponsor of the Main Conference of Genoa Shipping Week. 

Once operational, the Vado Gateway Terminal will be fully integrated with the existing Vado Ligure Reefer Terminal. Vado Ligure will become the first semi-automated port in Italy with a fully-automated gate and stacking yard. The 700m deep-sea berth at Vado Gateway will be capable of handling the latest Ultra Large Container Vessels (ULCVs) and up to 1.1 mln TEUs per annum. 

Off-dock rail facility

A new off-dock rail facility for both port terminals (4 lanes, 450m length) will provide rapid access to central and northern Europe such as Switzerland, Germany and France, as well as regions in Northern Italy, such as Lombardy, Piedmont, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna. The facility has the capacity for 14 trains per day.

Over the coming month, the final Ship-to-Shore cranes will be installed, and a range of tests will be carried out. Each of the four cranes is over 90 meters in height and weighs in at around 1,800 tons. They have a horizontal reach of 23 rows of containers, a maximum 65-ton capacity in twin lift configuration and 100 tons ‘under hook’. 

Automated yard

The terminal will operate the most highly automated yard in Italy using 14 Automatic Rail Mounted Gantry Cranes. The operator will intervene from a remote-control room only when required. This will enable the terminal to maintain the highest safety standards in the industry as no one will be physically present in the yard during container handling. Access to the automated forecourt will only be possible for maintenance activities when the cranes are non-operational.

Containers arriving at the Vado Gateway will be recorded using dynamic video cameras installed on quay cranes (STS). These will automatically send the information to the terminal's operating system.

New Terminal Operating System

Last month, APM Terminal Vado Ligure replaced their existing Terminal Operating System (TOS) with Navis 4, to support the Vado Gateway Terminal as well as increasing the terminal's operational efficiency. This highly advanced operating system is fully integrated with all the other equipment and enables real-time container tracking. This move also enables integration with the other APM Terminals companies in the world.

Containers will be transported around the terminal using hybrid Straddle Carriers. Operators will receive instructions directly from the TOS. Exchange areas within the terminal are equipped with cameras and sensors which, in the event of non-compliance with safety regulations, will trigger an alarm mechanism and block further operations.

Automated gates

On completion the integrated Vado Ligure Port complex will be accessible via 14 reversible gate lanes. Maximum efficiency and short truck-turn-times of around 30 minutes will be achieved using a truck appointment system which is fully integrated with Terminal Operating System.

As trucks arrive at the port, the license plate of the vehicle and the container number will be registered using optical character recognition (OCR). If all previously submitted documentation is complete, the truck will automatically be granted access to operating areas.

From 12 December 2019, the Vado Ligure Port Complex will be one of the most competitive terminals in Europe, combining innovation, automation, intermodal connectivity and the ability to offer fully integrated and complex services such as cold storage, project cargo, Ro-Ro and intermodal transport.