The Georgia Ports Authority and Konecranes are celebrating three decades of collaboration, marking 30 years since GPA acquired its first rubber-tired gantry crane from Konecranes a pivotal moment in the evolution of port operations and crane technology.
Griff Lynch, President and CEO of GPA said Konecranes has played a crucial role in enhancing our operational performance and customer service.
To commemorate the anniversary, GPA executives and board members visited the Konecranes global headquarters in Finland. During the visit, they toured the manufacturing facilities and expressed appreciation to the Konecranes leadership and workforce for their long-standing partnership.
Alec Poitevint, Chairman of the GPA Board highlighted that as we continue to expand and implement our port master plan, Konecranes equipment remains essential to realizing our long-term vision.
The Port of Savannah, home to the largest ship-to-shore and RTG crane fleet at a single terminal in North America, plays a central role in this collaboration. Since that first crane purchase in 1995, GPA’s RTG fleet has grown to 257 Konecranes machines across six facilities, along with 42 STS cranes also supplied by Konecranes.
Ed McCarthy, GPA’s Chief Operating Officer noted that thanks to the performance of these cranes and the partnership with Konecranes, they’re handling 36 vessel calls per week, 14,000 to 16,000 daily truck gate transactions, and 42 doublestack trains weekly, making us the fastest-growing port on the US East Coast.
Konecranes also recognized the collaborative spirit behind the success of this partnership.
Tuomas Saastamoinen, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Konecranes, noted that the latest hybrid diesel RTGs incorporate cutting-edge safety and operational assistance systems, enabling smooth and efficient container handling by GPA’s operators.
