Press Release

Ref: PRCSH108
Date: 24 November2016

£6million deal benefits Port of Swansea

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Associated British Ports (ABP) port of Swansea is set to improve operational efficiency and capacity following the arrival of a new hydraulic crane in December.

Supplied and installed by the country's largest independent provider of port equipment, Cooper Specialised Handling, it is the second of five Mantsinen hydraulic cranes destined for ABP facilities across the UK as part of a £6 million deal between the two companies.

Having been inspected and approved by team members from ABP's operations department in the factory, the machine - which has been specified with a range of attachments to handle coal, woodchip, RDF bales and other general cargo - will soon be transported by a combination of vessel and road transport from Finland to South Wales.

Tony Rooney, Managing Director at Cooper Specialised Handling, explained: "The new hydraulic crane specified for ABP's Swansea facility is designed to meet current needs and cope with future demands as the port expands in line with the economic growth of the wider region.

"The crane features Mantsinen's acclaimed Hybrilift energy storage and recovery system, which reduces energy consumption up to 35 percent, enabling the Port of Swansea to maximise efficiencies while also minimising its environmental impact as the business develops."

Covering an area of 521 acres, the South Wales port annually handles around 600,000 tonnes of cement, minerals, agribulks, coal, aggregates and project cargo. With the capacity to handle vessels of up to 30,000 dwt, ABP Swansea provides berths and handling facilities for most types of cargo.

Matthew Kennerley, Director of ABP South Wales, said: "ABP is committed to continuously improving the services we provide to our customers in order to ensure we are delivering a competitive and service focussed approach that meets their business needs.This is reflected in our investment in this key piece of cargo handling equipment which will support the Port of Swansea and deliver wider economic benefits to region."

"We are pleased to be working with Cooper on a series of important new contracts. Each of our five ports has its own handling needs dependent on vessel sizes, commodities and ground loading requirements. Our operational team, including those who will be using the cranes, have been actively involved in establishing the specification of these new cranes and we are confident that it will help us improve operational efficiency and customer service at the port."

 Caption:From the left, Dennis Joyce and Owen Williams, from ABP South Wales, Richard Frewin, from the port of Teignmouth and Michael Salvatore from South Wales - visiting the Mantsinen factory in Finland

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Editor's Notes

Cooper Handling Group operates in all sectors of lifting and materials handling across the UK and Ireland. Cooper Specialised Handling is its heavy handling division and is the exclusive UK distributor for Meclift and Sany equipment, sole importer and distributor for Mantsinen cranes and a specialist in Konecranes lift trucks. The company has a specialist aftersales division, Cooper Handling Solutions, while Cooper Materials Handling specialises in industrial forklift trucks and is the UK distributor for the Maximal brand.  Independently owned, Cooper offers total solutions for forklifts from 6 to 60 metric tonnes and a complete range of hydraulic cranes for solid and bulk handling. It provides high quality, high value products and reliable service to customers who operate in the toughest sectors across freight, ports, inter-modal terminals and other heavy lifting industries, together with a broad range of industrial materials handling applications from manufacturing to distribution.

Media contact:

Martin Farrow

CHANGEWORKS Communications Limited
t: + 44 (0) 1785 247588
e: mfarrow@changeworkscom.co.uk

Company contact:

Natasha Barnes

Business Development Manager

Cooper SH Limited
Holly Farm Business Park
Honiley
Kenilworth
Warwickshire
CV8 1NP
United Kingdom

Tel: 01926 658900
email:natasha@cooperhandling.com

W:www.cooperhandling.com