Roll-on / Roll-off Inland Deck Barge
April 2007
In April, 2007, Palletized Trucking was selected by Interstar Global Logistics for a complex transportation logistics project to deliver a large caustic water wash tank from the Port of Houston to the BASF Petrochemicals plant in Port Arthur, Texas. The heavy lift tank was 75 feet long, 21 feet wide, 23 feet high, and weighed 248,000 pounds.
Because of an urgent need for the wash tank, there was insufficient time for the four to eight week permitting and route survey processes required for road transport from Houston to Port Arthur. To meet the delivery deadline, the project plan provided for the wash tank to be delivered on a flat deck barge from the Port of Houston docks to a private barge terminal in Port Arthur.
Palletized Trucking provided a 2 x 6-line Goldhöfer hydraulic platform trailer configuration and prime mover for the project. The Goldhöfer hydraulic equipment ensured equal axle loading on uneven terrain and provided the maneuverability to negotiate curves on the narrow secondary roads that would have to be traveled in Port Arthur and the sharp turn into the plant. Our 10-member transport team included Goldhöfer-qualified driver and trailer operators, support staff, and a supervisor.
On April 23, 2007, Palletized Trucking positioned its equipment shipside at Houston's Industrial Terminal to receive the direct discharge of the wash tank. The load was secured, then moved to the Industrial Terminal barge dock where it was driven onto the inland deck barge and secured for the approximately 65 mile voyage to Port Arthur.
Upon arrival at the barge dock in Port Arthur, the load was driven off the barge and prepped for the approximately four mile trip to the BASF plant. The route to the plant included travel on secondary roads and contra-flow on a major state highway, traveling west in the eastbound lanes. This route required the use of police escorts, pilot vehicles and bucket trucks.
The load arrived at the plant on time and without incident.