PEMA paper reviews box weighing technologies

   The Port Equipment Manufacturers Association (PEMA) has published an information paper on container weighing technologies.
   The paper’s release follows the International Maritime Organization’s recent decision to press forward with a mandatory worldwide system for verifying container weights.
   “Container weighing is an increasingly hot topic in the global shipping industry and recent legislation passed by the IMO indicates that ports worldwide will have an increasingly critical role to play in checking and verifying container weights,” said Ottonel Popesco, PEMA’s president, in a statement.
   The IMO on Sept. 20 approved a proposal for verifying the weight of containers before they’re loaded onto ships. The new regulations will make container weighing compulsory, or to have their weight otherwise calculated.
   PEMA’s new report, Weighing Containers in Ports and Terminals, provides ports, terminal operators and other parties with information about the port-based container weighing technologies and systems that are currently available and their relative capabilities to accurately verify container weights.
   The paper also covers both weighbridges and weighing systems for use on various container handling equipment, including ship-to-shore container cranes, mobile harbor cranes, RTGs, RMGs, straddle carriers, reach stackers and container handling forklift trucks. The document includes a table summarizing the various technologies and their accuracy.