At the first stage of the logistics project, it becomes necessary to develop the optimal waterway for the supply of goods and the creation of berthing facilities at the ports of loading and unloading. The first task is often helped by nature itself, which arranges natural navigational shelters. In the operational room, temporary structures are being constructed. The work of hydraulic engineering equipment is carried out around the clock in any weather.
Considering that year-round navigation is logistically a pilot project and has no analogues on the inland waterways of the Russian Federation, not everything goes smoothly, and the experience of initial trial and error is present at the initial stage, however, thanks to the vast practical experience and high qualifications of employees, as a rule , tasks are being solved. During the first stage, several temporary berths are built, dredging works are carried out and navigation signs are installed to ensure the safety of navigation in a given direction. For the organization of logistics processes, a cargo-and-passenger port is organized, a dispatch center operating around the clock and equipped with everything necessary for the production of logistics calculations and solving operational issues.
The next important step is the selection of a specialized fleet for personnel delivery. Of course, the experience of the captains, their knowledge of the local sailing conditions and the well-coordinated actions of the crew are important. Transportation of employees is carried out on a regular basis with the highest level of security. To transport small consignments of employees (up to 12 people), the line uses the company's own small fleet, which, if weather conditions permit, runs regularly, providing communication with the mainland.
For the implementation of cargo transportation, the most optimal option turned out to be barge-towing trains with RO-RO barges, capable of quickly receiving rolling equipment through the ramps. This type of barge, ready to operate in the harsh winter conditions of Ladoga, is extremely rare, and its work is scheduled for months. Having reliable partners is very important in this kind of projects. Good cooperation, complete mutual understanding and the path to a common goal inevitably leads to an improvement in the quality of the provided transport and logistics services.
At the moment, transportation of a wide range of cargoes is carried out using several barge-towing trains. To a large extent, this was achieved thanks to the competent strategic interaction of LLC "Marinerus", which manages the work of the fleet on the project with the involvement of subcontracted shipping companies. The RO-RO method of loading and unloading when transporting rolling equipment is advantageous, and since this method does not require a port or crane equipment, the methodology is successfully applied to most projects. However, such cargo operations require ramps specially designed for rolling cargo operations. The ramps are transported on barges together with the transported cargo, which speeds up and optimizes loading and the final cost for the project customer,especially with heavy traffic.
The company makes sure that the vessels, even under maximum load conditions, are in excellent technical condition. The company's management has powerful and modern ice-class transport and tugboats, which have a multipurpose purpose and can, if necessary, be involved in any project. The tugs have the ability to work in areas with shallow draft, have excellent traction and can be used as rescuers, anchor handling or supply vessels. Of course, the entire fleet used for the needs of the projects has been modernized as much as possible, each vessel has been comprehensively repaired with the necessary docking and is regularly checked by technical specialists directly at the work site to meet all the necessary modern standards.
Navigation on Ladoga is not an easy task, therefore, in addition to the Rules for Navigation on the Inland Waterways of the Russian Federation, there are also local rules for navigation on the navigable waterways of the North-Western Basin that are binding on all vessels. Despite the fact that Lake Ladoga is a purely inland body of water, sea conditions of navigation operate on it. Fencing of navigational hazards, of which there are a lot on Ladoga, is carried out according to the international maritime system IALA (region A), but the fairways in the adjacent rivers are fenced with buoys and milestones according to the fencing system adopted at the GDP of the Russian Federation. The lake abounds in areas: temporarily prohibited for swimming; anchoring; fishing; underwater and dredging works; underwater explosions and sailing with an etched anchor-chain; temporarily dangerous for navigation, which complicates the already difficult navigation conditions.The heads of the dispatch and logistics department and the management personnel of "Marinerus" jointly develop the optimal composition of the fleet for the navigation and inter-navigation period. To accomplish these tasks, opposed goals are solved: on the one hand, minimizing the customer's costs, and on the other, guaranteeing safe and timely delivery of goods.
Ideally, the water transport logistic line should have an extremely short distance for the movement of the fleet - no more than 10 kilometers, so most of the time is spent by the coastal and ship services for loading and unloading operations and the reliable release of cargo and equipment. Sometimes it is extremely difficult to assess the volume and complexity of oversized cargo transportation, and the amount of work that has to be done by the company's engineers, ship crew, logistics specialists makes them work around the clock and seven days a week. Hence the saying: "The project does not know weekends and holidays." Each task is unique in its own way. Each flight requires careful study, design, planning, control at all stages. Even project flights, where all the stages seem to be worked out and similar, are not the same.The field of RO-RO transportation is very “lively” and the company deals with various difficulties, ranging from weather conditions to changes in precipitation levels, the introduction of new rules and restrictions. It is worth noting that every year the rules of shipping become stricter, a number of different transport formalities for the organization of shipping appear. New requirements are added for environmental protection, working conditions, etc. A heavy bureaucratic mechanism directly affects the speed of work and adjusts its pace.New requirements for environmental protection, working conditions, etc. are added. A heavy bureaucratic mechanism directly affects the speed of work and adjusts its pace.New requirements are added for environmental protection, working conditions, etc. A heavy bureaucratic mechanism directly affects the speed of work and adjusts its pace.
A lot is changing, and you need to have flexibility and the ability to quickly adapt to the changes taking place. It should be noted the competent and attentive attitude to the projects of various FBU services, whose employees, controlling, assisting, and in some cases taking an active part in projects, contribute to their competent implementation.
With an increase in the number of ships and personnel on the project, the management of the transport structure system is transferred from a manual format to an automated one using modern computer technologies, especially with an increasing volume of requirements from various authorities. That is why, the path of a systematic approach, the desire to solve most production issues in advance and a fresh organizational view allow not only to meet the uniqueness of the given production conditions, but also to improve the quality of the transport services provided. To fulfill all transport and logistics tasks, while observing, in many respects, unique production conditions, calculations are constantly performed in order to identify the optimal ways of organizing transportation and choosing watercraft. So,based on the goals set at a particular moment, the basic composition of the fleet serving the project is formed. However, due to dynamic navigation conditions, vehicle requirements are also changing. In winter, the priority is tugs with increased power and high ice class, capable of handling a barge in ice conditions, so the fleet is adjusted every six months.
An important factor is not only the correct choice of vehicles, but also the infrastructure used by these vehicles. To carry out operational transportation of goods and equipment, double cargo RO-RO berths are being built, which can simultaneously receive two ramp ships or barge towing trains. Moreover, each berth line is designed for a different side height and can be adjusted depending on changes in the water level. Access roads and parking areas for long-length trucks and construction equipment are being organized, which allow freely performing shunting operations during loading and unloading operations.
Hydrometeorological conditions for navigation of ships during the navigation period are most favorable in the summer. In general, calm in open water is extremely rare and is a gift for a water crossing line. It is during periods of calm weather that the most important and complex cargo deliveries are planned and carried out. The hydrometeorological conditions are less favorable for navigation of ships in the autumn period, when cyclonic activity intensifies, storms and strong waves are most likely, and fogs are more often observed. At this time, strong waves accelerate at great depths, and transportation of goods and personnel is impossible, which complicates the course of construction processes. It is for the regulation of transportation and coordination with the customer and contractors, the delivery of materials according to weather conditions,By the efforts of LLC "Marinerus" employees, personal meteorological stations and hydrometeorological buoys are installed, capable of transmitting weather data directly to users' devices.
Now both the captains of the ships and the dispatching service "MARINERUS" receive a daily adapted weather forecast directly, in the water area of operation, and online information about the actual state of the weather.
WEATHER FORECAST
for a day from 21:00 on August 29, 2019 to 21:00 on August 30, 2019
Wind:
South, South-East at night 3-7 m / s, in the daytime 4-9 m / s
Wave height:
0.3 -0.5 m, in the afternoon 0.5-0.8 m
Precipitation, phenomena: Intermittent
rain in the afternoon, haze in the morning
Visibility:
4-10 km., In the haze 1-2 km
Air temperature:
At night +10 ... + 13 degrees, during the day +20 ... + 22 degrees
Of course, with the onset of cold weather, the buoys have to be removed from their regular place, and navigation of ships in winter conditions can be difficult due to their icing, which is possible on large open sections at the end of the navigation period. In winter, strong movements of ice fields are possible and a cover thickness of 50-70 cm is considered normal, and sometimes reaches 100 cm in some areas. During the winter navigation period, special responsibility lies with the captains and crews of ships. At this time of the year, the fleet is operated by the most experienced specialists with many years of experience in working in ice.
Sudden freezing of shallow water areas is also dangerous, when vessels may be frozen in ice during the crossing. Considering that every year the weather conditions are less stable and the winters are unpredictable, it should be remembered that the period of frost and snow cover extends from late November to early April. The first half of winter is characterized by cloudy windy weather with frequent precipitation and snowstorms, thaws and fogs. The second half of winter is colder, with persistent frosts and frequent snowstorms. The ice regime of the RF GDP is complex: the ice cover in different parts of the lake is established at different times; at the same time, the development of ice formation occurs in circles from the shores to the center of the lake, therefore, as a rule, all GDP of the Russian Federation by February is always covered with a dense layer of ice, which is subjected to rather strong hummocking,as a result, ridges of hummocks are formed, separated from each other by strips of even ice. It was during this period that tugs perform the function of icebreakers, regularly entering the route and supporting the ice fairway, which can be closed at any time due to the movement of huge masses of ice. In this case, even a very powerful tug cannot cope with the elements alone.
Therefore, the entire fleet is in constant readiness for emergencies and non-standard situations.
The movement of the passenger fleet in projects is fully regulated by the dispatching service "Marinerus" - receiving and processing applications for transportation, scheduling traffic, organizing and monitoring the transport process.
As you know, safety is the most important factor that must always be taken into account when organizing and controlling any process, and for all the complexity of the existing project, all safety requirements are strictly observed and strictly checked by both LLC "Marinerus" and the customer's specialists. For prompt action in the event of emergency situations that entail a threat to health or human life, a rapid response service has been organized, capable of providing emergency transportation from the facilities of employees at any time of the day if necessary. To maintain a high level of production control, many modern means are used, including VHF radio stations, a video monitoring system and flying drones, capable of providing operational and up-to-date information on the location of floating objects.movement of ice fields, carry out inspection of external remote sensors of information systems.
Looking through the recorded statistics, we find that since 2016, within the framework of the projects, the dispatchers and logisticians of LLC "Marinerus" have organized about 7000 flights, of which about 4800 flights were performed by barge towing trains. Over the period from October 2016 to February 2021, more than 900 thousand tons of various goods and 70 thousand passengers were transported. At the stage of project development, these figures were considered only in the future and seemed very time consuming, but thanks to a systematic approach, now all this is being implemented at a high level.
In organizing the work of LLC "Marinerus" and the involved shipping companies, employees and crews of ships adhere to the following basic principles:
- Safety. The most valuable thing is human life. During the entire period of work, there was not a single case of harm to the health of passengers / project personnel. If necessary, urgent transportation was carried out for health reasons of the personnel, including in a dense 10-point ice field, in the dark and in conditions of limited visibility.
- Reliability. An uninterrupted transport service is constantly provided. Many operational issues related to climatic and industrial conditions are being resolved.
- Efficiency. Many production tasks are being solved that require prompt and competent decision-making. This is possible thanks to the approach that Marinerus and its contractors have built in the complex relationship of the transport business.
These three main provisions helped to formulate the main tasks, the solution of which led to the success in the organization of transport logistics.
Thus, LLC “Marinerus” carries out and controls the entire cargo and passenger traffic on projects, oversees the construction of new berths and hydrographic works, which contribute to improving the quality of logistics services to promote the project. We are confident that the completed production tasks in the future will have a positive impact on the development of the transport and logistics process not only in the northwest region, but will also be the next step towards achieving new goals on a national scale and on international logistics lines.