trailer world issue One 2008

control centre, the computer issues shipping papers and a gate pass equipped with a bar- code. Using this the driver scans himself in at the weighbridge. If everything is OK, the green light comes on and the barrier opens automatically. There are no recognition prob- lems. The sign-in terminals in the modern control centre can handle nine languages. And they also explain to the driver what personal safety equipment he has to have on board, and what loading instructions are to be followed. What may be OK driving in under the eyes of Kosubek’s shipping and safety peo- ple, could take you under certain circum- stances onto the “clearance truck park” when leaving. Because if you weigh more than 40 tonnes with coil on the back, you need a spe- cial approval, which permits transporters up to a maximum of 44 tonnes. The destination of many collectors is the VH 400, the 400-metre long, heated load- ing hall, in which thousands of steel coils are waiting to be despatched. With a quiet hum, the Demag Coil Master moves across the storage area by remote control. The crane can lift up to 40 tonnes with its electromagnet, and unload it over the coil cradle of the semi- trailer at one of the 12 loading bays. It is an ever-recurring ritual, generated by the works regulations when loading. Without a safety helmet on his head, the driver doesn’t even get through the roller shutter, which is immediately closed again to protect the valu- able steel coils. On reaching the loading bay just a few metres away, the driver slides back the tarpaulin cover of his semi-trailer, loads, chocks and lashes down his 30 tonnes of freight, and then drives forward to the end of the hall with the tarpaulin open. Only when a ceiling camera has photographed the load the driver can close the tarpaulin and leave the VH 400. “Ever since we have been making a No tailback, no rush: Check-in at Gate 6, the new trafﬁc control centre. The gate pass is scanned, the vehicle is weighed. Photos:Pusch The steel specialists  Salzgitter Flachstahl is the biggest steel subsidiary in the Salzgitter- Group. In 2007 almost 4,500 employees produced around 4.6 million tonnes of crude steel, 3 million tonnes of which was flat steel. Last year Salzgitter’s steel specialists from Lower Saxony achieved sales amounting 2.5 billion euros (2006: 2.27 billion). Among the most important customers were the steel trade, vehicle manufacturers, along with their suppliers, cold-rollers, tube and large tube manufacturers, and the construction industry. White, glistening jewels of industrial production Title 10 Issue One 2008

trailer world issue One 2008

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