DHL Global Forwarding is undertaking the transport of four enormous waste heat boilers from Germany to Saudi Arabia. The multimodal movement is being handled by DHL Industrial Projects, a unit within the forwarding arm of the Deutsche Post DHL Group specialising in transport of over-sized and heavy-lift cargo as well as complex end-to-end project forwarding.
For the transportation of the four 140-ton boilers measuring 3.70 metres in height, 4.10 metres in width and 19 metres in length, the world’s largest cargo aircraft Antonov AN225 is being deployed. A waste heat boiler is about as heavy as 24 full-grown African elephants.
DHL Industrial Projects chief executive officer, Nikola Hagleitner said: “Logistics, especially within the break-bulk segment, is all about local knowledge, mainly with regards to specificities of different ports or with reference to infrastructure, equipment, roads and regulation.
“When it comes to break-bulk logistics, our customers rely on our dedicated teams and their extensive expertise in some 60 offices across 45 countries. With this exciting transport we are again reaffirming our role as facilitator of global trade, no matter how challenging the task.”
The transit of the four super-sized waste heat boilers starts at the manufacturer’s plant in Berlin. From there, they are transported to the airport of Leipzig via the river Elbe, reloaded at the port of Aken and via road. From Leipzig, the heavy lift is then shipped to Saudi Arabia.
On their entire journey, the waste heat boilers are moved with the help of a 1,000-ton-mobile crane, a barge and a heavy goods transporter with 20 axles and a total weight of around 275 tonnes, and utilising an Antonov AN225 aircraft.
The heavy-duty freight is divided into four transports with an interval of roughly two to four weeks, each taking about seven days. The first three waste heat boilers have already arrived at their destination in Jubail at the Persian Gulf. The project is scheduled to be completed by the beginning of August.
