DEVELOPMENT OF DESIGN OF SHIP-TO-SHORE CONTAINER CRANES: 1959-2004 Nenad Zrni ü University of Belgrade, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dep. of Mechanization 11000 Belgrade, 27 marta 80, Serbia and Montenegro E-mail:
[email protected] Klaus Hoffmann Vienna University of Technology, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Inst. for Engineering Design and for Transport, Handling, and Conveying Systems A-1060 Wien, Getreidemarkt 9, Austria E-mail:
[email protected] ABSTRACT- The paper presents the historical development of mechanical and structural design of ship-to-shore (STS) container cranes, from 1959, when the first crane was built, up to now. The paper gives a short survey of the evolution of the container crane industry, the state of the art in modern container cranes, and focuses particular attention on mechanical design of trolleys and evaluation of the existing structures. The analysis of historical development and state of the art in modern container cranes enables us to analyze future trends in mechanical and structural design. KEYWORDS: History of STS container cranes, design, trolley, construction INTRODUCTION The method of handling ship cargo in the early 1950s was not very different from that used during the time of the Phoenicians, Figure 1 >6@. The time and labor required to load and unload ships increased substantially with the size of the ship, requiring more time in port than at sea, Figure 2 >6@. The problem “how to lift a load” is as old as humankind. From the earliest times people have faced this problem. The first written information on the use of hoisting mechanisms appeared around 530 BC, mainly concerning the construction of the first temple of Artemis in Ephesus >13@.