tevedoring and terminal operator Coastal Cargo Company introduced a floating crane to its fleet at the Port of New Orleans, adding to the company’s and the Port’s diverse cargo handling portfolio.
The Gottwald HPK 6500 B Floating Harbor Crane was shipped directly from the manufacturer in Germany to Port NOLA’s Louisiana Avenue Complex where it was assembled with its accompanying barge last summer. It became operational in October 2016.
“It’s a multifunctional, high-tech piece of equipment that has enhanced Coastal Cargo’s capabilities, and will boost Port NOLA’s growing bulk cargo activity,” said Morgan Haeuser, Coastal Cargo’s Account Executive of Sales and Marketing.
Coastal Cargo Company, headquartered in New Orleans with operations at three Gulf Coast ports, handles a variety of cargoes at Port NOLA including breakbulk, heavy-lift, over-dimensional and bulk. “The Gottwald crane has the capacity to handle this type of cargo diversity as well as allow for us to handle larger quantities of bulk more efficiently,” she said, adding that Coastal Cargo already handles more than 300,000 tons of bulk in New Orleans annually.
The $10 million crane utilizes both remote and motorized grabs. It is equipped with a 360-degree turning radius cab and nine grabs ranging from 6 to 52 cubic yards. While the crane will certainly bolster the movement of bulk at the Port, it has also been handling steel products and other types of breakbulk, heavy-lift, over-dimensional, and project cargo, including the much celebrated lift of a restored World War II PT boat from crawler to barge for the National WWII Museum.
“Coastal Cargo’s investment in the new multifunctional derrick crane highlights Coastal Cargo’s and Port NOLA’s partnership in the global supply chain as a diverse cargo hub,” said Robert Landry, Port of New Orleans Vice President of Commercial and Operations. “We look forward to continued growth together.”
When it came to naming the new Gottwald crane it was a no-brainer for Coastal Cargo, a family-owned operation. Dubbed “Elisa A,” the crane was named after Elisa Azze, a dear friend and colleague of Coastal Cargo Company’s President and CEO, and Morgan’s father, Dan Haeuser. Azze has been working for Coastal Cargo since the company was founded in 1987 by Dan Haeuser.
“Over the years, Elisa has been a trusted advisor to my father through the good times and the bad. Her loyalty, hard work and dedication have been instrumental in the company’s success,” said Morgan Haeuser. “She is truly one of a kind.”
Coastal Cargo has strong ties to all its employees and to New Orleans. Morgan Haeuser described Coastal Cargo’s facility at the Louisiana Avenue Complex as “the poster child of a great breakbulk and bulk facility” with a mile of berthing space, direct access to rail, truck and barge, large warehouses equipped with covered rail, an expansive equipment inventory and plenty of room for inside and outside storage.
“The fact that we are the only family-owned stevedoring company headquartered in New Orleans speaks for itself,” she said. “We have operations at other ports but we’re proud to be a New Orleans company and we intend to keep it that way. It’s our home.”
Photo by Frank Aymami, courtesy of The National WWII Museum
Coastal Cargo’s $10 million Gottwald crane, named Elisa A, was responsible for a much publicized lift of a restored World War II PT boat from crawler to barge for the National WWII Museum located in New Orleans.
