Ship Loading & Vessel Loading Solutions

Mobile ship loaders replace fixed shore-mounted galleries with equipment that travels along the quay, follows the vessel and telescopes into the hatch — cutting dust, spillage and capital cost versus permanent infrastructure.

The Ship Loading Challenge

Fixed ship loaders are expensive, slow to permit and unable to serve different berths or vessel sizes. Manual methods spill cargo, generate dust and bottleneck the quay.

Mobile loading matches the loader to the ship: the machine positions at the hatch, telescopes inward and luffs to control the stream from freeboard to deep hold.

Recommended Equipment Lineup

The mobile ship loader is the workhorse for barge and coaster loading, while the crawler-type mobile ship loader adds tracked mobility for undressed quays and soft ground.

For terminals that also stockpile, a radial telescopic stockpiler can pre-build piles and feed the loader, and grasshopper conveyors bridge gaps between the stockyard and the berth.

• Mobile ship loader — wheeled quay loader for barges and coasters.
• Crawler-type mobile ship loader — tracked for soft or unprepared quays.
• Radial telescopic stockpiler — stockyard feed and rehandle.
• Grasshopper conveyors — link stockyard to berth.

Layout & Workflow

Material is conveyed from the stockyard or truck receiving to the loader, which travels along the quay and telescopes into each hatch. Luffing and slewing keep the drop point centered to limit free-fall dust and trim the hold evenly.

Because the loader is mobile, one berth can serve multiple vessel sizes and the same machine can be moved to a second terminal, improving asset use.

Planning & ROI Tips

Match loader capacity (up to 1500 t/h) and boom reach to your largest vessel and tidal range; specify dust suppression and a sealed belt path for coal, cement or grain.

Compare the mobile loader’s installed cost and lead time against a fixed gallery, and factor quay flexibility and the commissioning guidance SANTO provides for fast start-up.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a mobile ship loader?

A mobile ship loader is a wheeled or tracked conveyor that travels along a quay and telescopes into vessel hatches to load bulk cargo at up to 1500 t/h, without fixed shore infrastructure.

When should I choose a crawler-type ship loader?

Choose the crawler-type mobile ship loader for soft, unprepared or tidal quays where wheeled loaders cannot operate safely, or where the berth surface varies.

How do mobile loaders control dust during loading?

Telescoping and luffing booms keep the material drop height low and centered in the hatch, and sealed belts plus optional dust suppression reduce spillage and airborne dust.