Xelasnave - anyone??

[PCH]

Hey guys,

Anyone know if Alex is ok?

He was a prolific poster these last 300 years, but nada since April 23.

Seems a little unusual. Hope he's ok.

Cheers

[croweater]

I was starting to wonder too mate as I always enjoy his posts. Hope he is okay. Cheers, Richard

[ZeroID]

Hmm, yes, his erudite ramblings were always informative and entertaining.

[AstralTraveller]

I've been thinking the same for a while. However I think that he has gone quiet for a while a few times in the past. I notice he was suffering from shingles in Feb so I hope it's not related to that and he is just enjoying the good life out of internet contact.

[leon]

Funny you say that, :shrug: well probably not funny but it had crossed my mind recently, as he was always here and sometimes we couldn't shut him up, I mean that in the best of terms :) as he was great to talk to. :thumbsup:


Leon :thumbsup:

[el_draco]

Calling all cars, calling all cars... be on the lookout for ALEXIO.... :screwy:
Ah, hell... way to much contreau!
;)

[xelasnave]

Sorry I am ok .

I visit every week but have not been logging in but I read stuff and think about what I have read.

Legs are even getting better.

Plus I have been working on various problems in an effort to help humanity.

Do you think this could work?

We have a new container ship. It comes to rest in a dock. There is only one big container which is moved off the ship on tracks for movement to a special unloading bay ( which I am working on such that unloading onto trucks is different and more efficient).
The idea is these single massive containers should enable loading and unloading in a much shorter time only an hour or two...meaning faster turn around. Oh and this container is covered in solar panels which contributes the a considerable saving in energy costs.
And I seek ideas as to how it will work and if you see a problem present your plan on how to overcome that problem.
Laying out the docks and the terminals is challenging but many efficiencies would seem to exist.
Such a system could employ multiple docks to handle more ships off course.
It could use tides only and still double current loads rate but if you pumped the dock another two times you would get four unloads...
And I have been working on a new model for human society under my proposed new world, solar system order.

So I am OK.
Alex

[blink138]

haha, the giant awakens!
pat

[brian nordstrom]

;) Good news brother as I was a little concerned as well .

Brian .

[el_draco]

All's well in the world.... :lol:

[brian nordstrom]

:rofl:
Brian

[astroron]

Hi Alex:hi:
How do you fill the giant container:question:
The dock would have to be the height of the ship,or the ship would want to tilt as the weight is transferred toward the dock.
The strength of the cranes or tracks would have to be tremendous,also you would obviously have to load and unload the contents your giant container at the docks and then put the load into containers to be transported to their destination.
More roads etc
The idea of containers is that they are flexible ,Ie can be moved and loaded for their specific destinations relatively quickly.
Container ships visit many ports in some countries.
Of course the construction of New Ports to cater for your "One Container" only ships would be immense.
I would be interested to see your answer on the few points I have mentioned.
Cheers:thumbsup:

[xelasnave]

Hi Ron thank you for your interest.
Needless to say the major attraction of my idea is that it places demands upon engineering that they love to show can be done.

The single container would hold conventional containers. The ship must be able to rest on keels (twin bilge keel). The water drops in the dock and the tracks on ship and shore line up, one on one off in a short time.
So our tracks must support , 20,000 shipping containers and our drive system robust.
Once relocated the containers could be taken off conventionally but I would think one must be able to use the in shore location to have trucks remove containers simply by backing up and then sliding them on..
More roads...this is big you would build an island to put it on...think of many of these containers coming down tracks for export, lined up, ships dock, unload and load.
The unload distributed like a rail network to where trucks unload.
It boils down to how many ton of cargo a ship carries and we build rails and motor gear box to move it.
Alex

[astroron]

Alex, most container ships today are in the 50 to 75 thousand Tons or more range,twenty thousand would be classed as a small container ship.
Looking at your model, I see lots of stumbling blocks,Cost, availability of space,flexibility, etc. :)
I await further detail as you figure out the logistics and the feasibility of your master plan.
Cheers:thumbsup:

[AndrewJ]

Biggest problem i see is not all containers get removed and or loaded at one port.
They effectively play rubiks cubes in how to stack and unstack containers to allow the most efficient load/unload times at the multiple ports along the way. Lots of mathematical models around to optimise loading these beasties.

Andrew

[raymo]

The first obstacle that I see is that there would have to be more smaller
container ships rather than the present situation of fewer larger ones.
If you have say 1000 containers at say 8 tons each, can you imagine the weight of a single large module [container] capable of being moved
around on dry land with that weight inside it? It would have to be incredibly strong to avoid its structure deforming when it was being moved.
Having been an engineer on such vessels, I am familiar with how the
system works. At the beginning of the voyage containers are placed
so that they are easily accessed at their appropriate port of call, so you
don't have to juggle containers around too much to get at the one you want.
The vessel would also be capable of carrying far fewer containers because
of the sheer weight of the module. Also, the ship's structure would have to be massively strengthened in order to withstand the huge module moving around inside it; yet more weight. I am joking, but you'd end up with the module having half a dozen lonely containers sitting inside it.
raymo

[xelasnave]

So is it possible to move such a load?
This is for the next century where one car manufacturer is loading four of these ships at a time.
The population is mega stuff has to moved bigger and better.
How many wheels would you need?
How many HP to move it.
Alex

[xelasnave]

Say 100,000 ton.
Each wheel supports 10 ton that would be 10,000 wheels as a starting point. What area? Wheels per sq my.???
Maybe a sled? Air lift assist?
Who would buy this idea... as in pay money?
What weight per sq mt ??
You would need to fit the wheels when ship is docked.
Not a problem I just don't know how yet.
I guess I see the engineering around the world and it seems like anything can be done..
I can see it in my imagination ..
I saw a show where they built and island to be able to move goods...these folk don't know it can't be done...
Alex

[xelasnave]

Solar panels would maybe produce only 1000 HP (ruff calculation) and these ships use nearly 100,000 HP. Scrub the panels although having them may open doors of support, but panels 1% of needs
Would work out interestingly by sheer chance there would be 10 ton per square my approx which is what my hypothetic wheel could carry.
So a trolley 30 + wheels wide and 300 or so length ways.
Each wheel contains a electric hub motor than can move 10 ton...say a how many HP motor??
100 ??
Its coming together.
Alex

[julianh72]

Alex,

Firstly - welcome back!

In answer to your question, the answer is yes, these loads can be moved, but the logistical planning is huge. It is done routinely in the heavy construction sector, particularly for large oil / gas / mining plants in remote parts of the world, where the cost of site labour is very high.

The largest module-move project I have ever been involved with was about 12 years ago, for an oil project in northern Siberia, 600 km from the Arctic coast. We designed and built a module with an all-up mass of 8,000 tonnes. The module was landed at a purpose-built port in the summer, when the harbour was not frozen over. We then waited until winter, when the ground would freeze to be strong enough to carry the enormous loads, so we could haul it over the frozen ground to the site. The 600 km trip took several weeks. We then left the site and waited until summer for final fit-out and commissioning - because nobody could work outdoors in winter. It took a a bit over a year from landing the module to getting it operational, but about 8 months would have been idle time, waiting for the seasons to change.

As an engineering challenge - your mega-container ship is a fantastic idea. As a solution to global transport - I have my doubts.

Container transport is a remarkably efficient means of moving general cargo around the world. Getting the existing 20' and 40' containers on and off the ships is the easy part. The cranes are very fast, and they have fast shuttle vehicles to take to containers between the cranes and the container stacks, so a modern large container ship typically only spends a day or so in each port that it picks up and drops off cargo.

E.g. check out this site for the Port of Brisbane https://qships.tmr.qld.gov.au/webx/ , and then filter down to look at arrival and departure times for container ships, such as:

Laust Maersk (63,000 DWT) arriving 1 July between 00:01 - 03:30; departing between 23:00 - 02:30 (01 / 02 July)

ANL Wahroonga (68,000 DWT) arriving 1 July between 01:12 - 04:48; departing 2 July between 05:00 - 08:30

[julianh72]

For the big modules I have worked on, they use SPMTs ("Self-Propelled Modular Transporters" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-propelled_modular_transporter ) which allow you to gang together as many sets of wheels as you need to do the job. They are computer-controlled, height-adjustable (so they can keep the platform straight and level even as they travel over undulating ground), with every axle 360-degree steerable (the platform can even move sideways if necessary). For a purpose-built rig to do the sort of job you are looking at, I would think crawler tracks would probably be a good consideration (e.g. as use at Cape Canaveral to move the assembled rockets to the launch pads).

Mammoet is a big player in this field (pun intended - "mammoet" is Dutch for "mammoth") - their web page shows a naval patrol boat on a set of SPMTs (see attached), so I suggest you give them a call if you want a quote. :)
http://www.mammoet.com/en/equipment/transport/self-propelled-modular-transporter/spmt/

[xelasnave]

Thanks Julian.
I really have not been away I visit regularly but don't log in.
Thank you for considering my idea.
As you say container ships have about 24 hours at the dock.
My idea was simply to process four in 24 hours, so as to increase port turnover and move ships thru faster.

Anyways someone else will have to work out the details as I think finalizing the details for the New world/solar system Order should be my main priority.

Alex

[raymo]

The single fact that you can't get around is that the module on a large
container ship would contain several times the 8,000 tons that Julian
mentioned, and a module of that size and strength would be horrendously heavy, and every ton of infrastructure on the ship, would be one ton
less of cargo [containers] that the ship could carry. The module would probably weigh as much as the containers it carries, cutting the amount
of cargo by 50%.
raymo

[AndrewJ]

You still need to get around the fact that not all containers get loaded/unloaded at a single port.
Unless you can load/unload the "selected" containers, then its a futile exercise to go any further.
Andrew
( also used to play with heavy stuff and transporter units locally, but that was only in the hundreds of tons. Watching some of the engineering involved in moving 40000+ ton modules for offshore platforms in the North Sea ( Norwegian GullFaks ), i can say its not going to be cheap :-) )

[xelasnave]

I hope there will be less concerns with my plans for the new W/SS Order.
Obviously I need to provide methods of dealing with those who may foolishly stand in the way.

Anyways now that the main problems that must be overcome with the very large shipping container have been identified I can leave it to others to sort out the details.

Alex

[ZeroID]

Phew, the world just righted itself, welcome back Alex .

To your proposed shipping solution.

Isn't a container ship just one big 'Container' anyway .... for lots of smaller containers to multiple destinations ..

Put it on wheels ...

[sharpiel]

I'd love to help you with that :D

[xelasnave]

I have had to abandon my "order" plan. It seems most humans would be eliminated.

Maybe rather than one massive container we go for say four.Still faster.
Alex

[xelasnave]

I think currently they can unload two containers at at go.
So maybe a system where we lift more than the current number. Twenty at at time would be well received.
Alex

[xelasnave]

They will have to be loaded on the 10,000 wheel trolley I have already designed.
Alex

[leon]

He is alive and well, well that is good at least.

Leon

[astroron]

Those containers would be dead weight,possibly weighing 5-10000 tons, how many normal containers could be carried and stowed in place of that weight.
The whole idea ultra expensive,with no economic value as I can see it.
To build the infrastructure to accommodate these ships would be astronomical
It is great you're thinking out of the box,but this time I just think the extra box is not needed.;)
Cheers:thumbsup:

[xelasnave]

I am designing tiny houses now.
Alex

[sharpiel]

If you're selling to tiny minded people you'll be a very rich man.

[xelasnave]

Any of my designs are gifts if anyone can benefit from my ideas.
Alex

[ramjet146]

Good to see You back Alex, brother Chris asked me where you were last week. I'll let him Know youre still above grass
Roger

[xelasnave]

Roger.
It is so good to hear from you.
We have to get together.
I lost my old phone and your number so please send me a pm.
I am in Sydney most of the time to be near Dad but up here at the moment.
Say hi to Chris for me.
Wow man you made my day.
Are you still older than me?
Do you realise I have known you longer than any other human...over fifty years...52? 53?
Remember when I crashed the old Austin...
I saw Tom in Lismore and Robin...he hasn't changed ..he said the last time he saw me was when you loaded me in the car at Ghlebs wedding..I still don't drink vodka..damn those Russians.