By Baibhav Mishra -October 23, 2019
EagleRail’s 100% electric overhead container movement system eliminates port gridlock, reduces emissions and increases capacity
EagleRail Container Logistics, a global container logistics company based in Chicago, Illinois, USA, today announced officials at the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) in Chattogram, Bangladesh have signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) to begin the first steps toward transforming and improving throughput on their overcrowded, and gridlocked port roads and gates.
EagleRail Container Logistics has created the first automated, patented and environmentally conscious system to increase port throughput and capacity. Its technology and infrastructure solution replaces the manual, dirty reliance on diesel trucks with a short-haul, suspended overhead container movement system that quickly lifts containers and shuttles them to local yards or intermodal transportation hubs, bypassing ground obstacles, including roadways and open water.
“We are honored that officials in Bangladesh have given the green light to investigate ways EagleRail can reduce crippling gridlock and improve efficiencies between their existing and new terminals and intermodal connections,” said Mike Wychocki, CEO, EagleRail Container Logistics, in Bangladesh for the official signing ceremony on October 17, 2019.
“The gridlock of commerce occurring between ports and intermodal points can no longer be ignored, and that’s why authorities from 17 countries are in discussions with us to study potential port and rail throughput-improvement rates by bringing our patented solution to their nations. Our system will transform port and intermodal connectivity around the world,” Wychocki added.
EagleRail is being considered for official insertion into the Chittagong Master Plan for the new Bay Container Terminal (BCT) connecting it to the Karnaphuli River terminals (NCT, CCT, and GCB) and both expanded railheads that connect container rail traffic to Dhaka. EagleRail is also being considered as part of the master design for the new and expanded Customs Clearance operation (for all terminals) in order to increase the number of containers that get scanned in-line, which is an operational advantage of overhead light-rail transportation.
The EagleRail solution is emission-free and has shown in studies to reduce CO2 and particulate pollution by up to 60 percent when compared to diesel trucks. In addition to this MoU in Bangladesh, EagleRail also has an agreement in place in Gujarat, India, with many other system implementation discussions underway in Brazil, South Africa and China.
“With the continued growth in global trade and ships now several times larger than their predecessors only a decade ago, ports constantly struggle to keep their yards unclogged and functioning properly,” said Ian Harris, Vice President Strategic Sales, COSCO Shipping Lines Inc. “The terminals need a higher velocity and higher flow technology than individual trucks or legacy on-dock rail where availability is hampered by railcar imbalances or engine and power shortages. To maintain yard fluidity, it is essential to be able to transport thousands of containers in and out of the terminals in the shortest time possible,” Harris added.
In Bangladesh, EagleRail is partnering with local infrastructure and technology consulting firm, Cosmos Group, based in Dhaka and Chattogram.”EagleRail’s innovative solution shall greatly help with sustaining Bangladesh’s continued growth, through the highly efficient and accurate handling of cargo at Chittagong port, eventually benefiting a whole range of clients spanning from common consumers to service providers of the nation as a whole,” states Enayetullah Khan, Founder and Chairman, Cosmos Group.
Globally, EagleRail Container Logistics is partnering with ZPMC, a world leader in container crane manufacturing, cargo handling equipment and offshore heavy-duty products, to design and develop the automated lifting and shuttling system. EagleRail is also working closely with industry-leading virtual conveyance-planning software FlexSim, to demonstrate verifiable system elements for each installation, such as volume, route, track, and load-station options to ultimately provide efficiency and financial data before any expensive design work is commenced.
CEO Mike Wychocki will present details of the EagleRail Container Logistics solution during a keynote speech at Port Technology International’s annual conference, Smart Digital Ports of the Future, in Rotterdam, Netherlands, November 4 – 6, 2019. For a video of the EagleRail solution, please click here.
About EagleRail Container Logistics
Founded in 2015, EagleRail Container Logistics is a disruptive innovator providing alternative container transportation solutions between container port terminals and intermodal operations around the world. The automated, overhead container transportation solution is emission-free and alleviates port congestion while reducing pollution and traffic in and around container terminals. The EagleRail solution has been demonstrated in more than 40 ports in 17 countries, is patented in the U.S., and is awaiting patent approvals in China, Brazil, South Africa, India and the European Union.
About Cosmos Group
With its beginnings in the trading industry with shipping interests, the formation of Cosmos Group coincided with that of Bangladesh. In less than four decades, Cosmos has grown into a large conglomerate with a substantial presence in multiple sectors, namely Oil & Gas, mining, telecommunications, instrumentation, shipping & logistics, media, manufacturing and trading. As a rising Bangladeshi conglomerate, Cosmos Group is steadily leaving a gradually-expanding footprint globally.