All Major Equipment of Busan Port Cranes to Be Fully Localized... High-Intensity R&D Project to Reduce Safety Accidents

Busan Port Authority Initiates Localization of 'Harbor Crane Hands' Previously Fully Imported
Selected as Final Project for Joint Investment R&D by Ministry of SMEs, Enhancing Economy and Safety

Conceptual diagram of spreaders such as cranes within the port and application cases.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The "spreader," the crane's hand that lifts and lowers containers within the port, is expected to be domestically produced.

Currently, all spreaders on cranes at Busan Port are foreign-made.

Busan Port Authority (BPA, President Nam Ki-chan) announced that on November 11, the project titled "Development of an economical spreader with improved performance and excellent durability for domestic port equipment establishment" was finally selected under the "Purchase-Conditioned New Product Development Project Joint Investment Type" implemented by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups.

Last year, BPA investigated the status of overseas technology adoption for equipment and facilities operating at Busan Port.

This year, BPA analyzed the marketability of port equipment parts, technological capabilities, and company levels to establish a comprehensive R&D roadmap for domestic production of port equipment.

The selected project is the top priority in the machinery sector of the domestic R&D roadmap and was prepared accordingly. The spreader is a key component in port loading and unloading operations, functioning like a hand that grips container cargo when cranes load and unload containers onto ships.

Currently, about 500 cranes using spreaders operate at Busan Port, all of which use foreign products from Sweden, Germany, China, and others.

This project is a core R&D initiative planned by BPA to enhance port workers' safety following recent container falling accidents caused by spreader malfunctions, improve equipment durability against cracks and damage from impacts, and reduce maintenance and repair costs.

The technology development project will be conducted over two years, with a total budget of 1.15 billion KRW, with the government and BPA each investing 510 million KRW.

Hanmi Techwin Co., Ltd., a specialized manufacturer of transport and handling equipment, will take overall charge of developing the domestically produced spreader.

Outsourcing participants include KR Engineering Co., Ltd. for structural analysis and durability verification, Goeun Technology Co., Ltd. for test equipment design and manufacturing, and Dana Patent Corporation for business feasibility evaluation, economic analysis, and patent strategy establishment to support entry into domestic and international port markets.

Hanmi Techwin plans to improve durability by applying domestically produced high-strength welding structural steel and introduce a DOUBLE TYPE that allows all maintenance within the main frame.

They plan to develop a spreader that prevents worker safety accidents and enables faster operation by using a high-spec motor with improved output.

BPA aims to secure about 30% lower price competitiveness compared to foreign products through this R&D project, maximizing import substitution effects and enabling rapid after-sales service management to improve service quality.

It is expected to reduce social and economic costs caused by port operation stoppages and safety accidents due to spreader failures.

President Nam Ki-chan said, "We will expand R&D for domestic production of port-related materials, parts, and equipment to rebuild the domestic port equipment ecosystem, which has been eroded by low-cost foreign products since the 1990s, centered on Busan Port, and actively strive to develop advanced new technologies responding to the 4th Industrial Revolution."

BPA is proceeding with domestic production of port equipment by ordering all 55 port cranes (project cost 291.9 billion KRW), including 9 berth cranes and 46 yard cranes for use at the Busan New Port Seo'Con' 2-5 stage piers, from domestic heavy industry companies as of last December.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.