Since 27 June, China has had its first operational autonomous rail yard in a container terminal. It combines automated operations with manual labour, allowing for a certain degree of operational flexibility. As the first such facility in China, it is still an experimental case.
The experimental autonomous zone is located at the Suxi container terminal in the city of Yiwu, southwest of Shanghai. It has remote-controlled gantry cranes, automated storage systems, and intelligent transporters.
Alongside automated operations, manual labour will continue to take place. “The mixed-mode design allows for seamless integration of automated and manual processes, enhancing efficiency while ensuring operational flexibility”, a representative of the terminal said.
The Suxi container terminal
The Suxi terminal as a whole has a container handling capacity of 660,000 TEU per year. It has a rail loading zone, container yard, and customs area. It also directly links up to Ningbo, an important Chinese port. To streamline sea-bound transports, Suxi provides “one-time declaration, inspection, and release” procedures. That allows for freight to be handled as if it had already reached the port, reducing administration and making exports more efficient.