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The fifth World Crane and Transport Summit was attended by more than 270 delegates as it opened its doors at the NH Grand Krasnapolsky Hotel in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on 4-5 November.
Keynote speaker Jan Kleijn, CEO of Mammoet, started the two-day event by highlighting some of the potential disruptive trends impacting on the industry.
He mentioned uncertainties in the energy industry, the refugee crisis in Europe, lower oil prices, political issues in Russia; “These and other issues make it clear that we can no longer rely on relentless economic growth.”
He said web-based technology companies like Uber and Airbnb were examples of disruptive changes; “we are challenged to embrace these changes…just imagine if somebody started an Uber service for cranes and transport…a company without any assets.
“We are a quite conservative industry, we like to own our equipment – we are proud of it, me too – is this the way to think ahead?”
“3D printing, at first glance, may be great…but if you take it to the next level, what about printing a bridge or a 1000 t process reactor on site – no need for cranes, no need for transport…The biggest competition we will face will be from something that we don’t expect.”
He also said leaders of the crane and transport industry were in a position to have an impact on sustainability; “What can we do today? Why don’t we have recycling standards for crane mats, or use technology to reduce our carbon footprint…We must urge ourselves to rethink our business models.”
Other presentations over the two days looked at proposals for a European crane operator licence scheme; new ESTA guidelines on the operation of SPMTs; and safe lift and transport planning for wind turbine erection.
Presentations from the conference can be downloaded at www.khl.com/wcts
The World Crane and Transport Summit was organised by International Cranes and Specialized Transport magazine and KHL Group.
It was supported by industry associations, including the SC&RA and ESTA. Gold sponsors were Terex and Zoomlion. Silver Sponsors were Kobelco, Liebherr, Manitowoc, Scheuerle/Nicolas/Kamag and Tadano. Supporting sponsors were A1A Software, Blok Cam, Faymonville, Goldhofer, Modulift, Trimble and WireCo WorldGroup.
The dates and location for the next WCTS has still to be confirmed, but it is likely to take place in late 2017, in Europe.
