'Duluth has what it takes'

When it comes to heavy lifting, this Port is equipped

Duluth-Superior is often selected as the port of entry for heavy-lift shipments because it has all the key components that are required, including rail.

The Dutch vessel Fairload paid an early August call to the Clure Public Marine Terminal with 10 dimensional pieces of equipment manufac tured in Spain and destined for northern Alberta. The largest of the pieces measured 147 feet long and weighed 131 metric tons.

The Rotterdam-based vessel was carrying the first of three shipments to arrive on Jumbo vessels for a Syncrude UE-1 oil sands project near Ft. McMurray, with the second in late October and the third scheduled for spring 2003.

Once lifted off the Fairload, this oil-extraction equipment is delicately deposited onto heavy-duty railcars.

Four special eight-axle railcars were supplied for the August shipment by TTX Corp., Chicago, to carry the pressure cylinders. The October shipment onboard the Dutch vessel Jumbo Vision included seven bolstered loads, with seven in excess of 500 tons each, and three of nearly 400 tons each. The overland leg required several heavy-duty flatcars as well as single railcars.

The vessels for both the August and October shipments were operated by Jumbo, a heavy-lift shipping company headquartered in Rotterdam.

The cargo was handled by special trains from Duluth to Ft. McMurry via Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Canadian National railroads.

Lake Superior Warehousing's Gary Nicholson (left) and Syncrude UE-1's Ed Clarke — and another job well done.

This oil extraction and upgrading endeavor is one of several underway in northern Alberta, and one of several using Duluth-Superior as a conduit for the heavy-lift equipment.

Lake Superior Warehousing Co., Inc., operator of the general cargo facilities at the Port Authority-owned Terminal, has established a world-wide reputation for handling high-wide and oversized project cargoes.

"Duluth is often selected as the North American port of entry because of a combination of its excellent facilities for dimensional cargoes as well as the rail and road clearances between the Port and job sites," said Ed Clarke, Calgary, Alberta, senior logistics coordinator for Syncrude UE-1 and project transportation manager.

"Duluth has what it takes to get a heavy-lift shipment moving," he said.

So what does it take? The most obvious contributors are heavy-lift vessel owners and operators, LSW's excellent labor force, experienced local vessel agencies, transport and logistic coordinators, railroads with heavy-duty cars, trucking companies with heavy-duty vehicles and specialized crews experienced with high-wide shipments. There are also several less obvious heavy-lift laborers required to handle the workload. The economic spinoff is significant, with the Syncrude UE-1 shipment in August alone calling for the following specialists:

Certified welders from Superior's Lakehead Constructors, Inc.

An engineering consortium led by SNC-Lavalin, Inc., and Fluor Daniel Canada, Ltd., both of Calgary, B.C.

Weld certification by Twin Ports Testing, Superior.

Machine parts from providers Jim's Welding and Cragin Machine Shop, Inc., both of Superior.

Tie-down materials from supplier Northeast Supply Company (NESCO), Duluth.

Ballast plate supplier LB Steel, LLC, Harvey, Ill.