The specialized trucks introduced in the Kenyan markets last month will improve truck turnaround in a move geared towards cutting down transport cost, one of the biggest components in shunting cargo from one point to the other.
The trucks, which have mounted hydraulic cranes can load and offload containers of up to 50 tonnes from their flatbeds or to other conventional trucks. With installed capacity of stacking two containers at a time, offloading can only take about 15 minutes.
“Transporters will no longer need to wait while the container content is offloaded at the point of destination. Depending on the nature of the cargo, this process can take an ostensibly long period of time at an extra cost to the shippers,” Mr Kimkung Mwanjala, a director at EV Logistics Ltd, the transport firm behind this latest technology told Freight Logistics.
The trucks will significantly improve truck turnaround for those importing cargo for huge projects since containers can be left on the site for smooth offloading. The containers can also serve as temporary warehouses, especially for sites that are still under construction.
Importers shunting cargo from the point of entries- Mombasa port, Nairobi and Naivasha Inland Container Depot (ICD) will not be required to deploy many trucks since the specialized truck can be stationed on the destination site where it will serve as an unloading equipment for the other ordinary trucks, improving truck turnaround and maximum use of truck drivers.
This will cut down on the cost of hiring and deploying cargo handling equipment at the site where a top loader can charge as high as Sh 20,000 per hour.
“This will have a far-reaching effect on the costs of transport accruing to the shippers,” Mwanjala said.
The trucks will also appear attractive to importers dealing with delicate goods that require careful handling and a lot of time since they can have the containers left at the yard and collected days later to avoid the cost of waiting transporters.
Importers are supposed to return empty containers to designated yards in Mombasa within 14 days for domestic cargo and up to 45 days for transit goods, giving them a lot of flexibility in handling the goods.
It will also help importers of heavy goods such as vehicle engines who experience a lot of challenges when cargo handling equipment is not available.
“We will also play an important role to those seeking to transport and make fabricated containers for other uses such as construction of offices in remote areas, which is gaining currency in Kenya,” Mwanjala said.
