Lero, MTU, Liebherr sign four-year partnership
Liebherr Container Cranes, Science Foundation Ireland software research centre Lero, and Munster Technological University have signed a four-year partnership to develop and expand ‘smart cranes’ which help to safely and efficiently move millions of shipping containers around the world every day.
Lero researcher Prof Joseph Walsh, based at the Munster Technological University’s Kerry campus, is leading the partnership with Killarney-headquartered Liebherr along with six full-time researchers on the project: Smart Systems for Next Generation Container Cranes (SmartCrane).
Liebherr’s managing director, Charlie McCarthy, said the partnership would help strengthen Liebherr’s market position and will allow Liebherr to remain at the forefront of container crane development.
“Liebherr is an industry leader in the manufacture of container cranes, and we enjoy an enviable reputation for providing cranes of exceptionally high quality. Our ongoing relationship with Lero and the team at MTU enables us to compete on quality and technological innovation building on substantial investment in research and development to help ensure the future success of the company and our customers,” said McCarthy.
“Container cranes are one of the most significant investments and operating expenses in ports and intermodal terminals worldwide. The collaboration focuses on technologies such as operational digital twins, advanced data analytics and advanced sensing systems to enhance the design, deployment and operation of cranes around the world,” he added.
Prof. Walsh, whose work encompasses intelligent mechatronics, software, and intelligent sensor systems, said: “The research is complex because container cranes are highly advanced systems operating in complex environments. This requires significant research in disciplines such as data analytics and software systems as we strive to further enhance the functionality of Liebherr’s state-of-the-art automated cranes, each of which is comparable to an entire factory in terms of the complexity of digital systems”.
Liebherr is a key employer in the South-West with over 800 employees and a long-time collaborator with universities through their research, engineering and IT scholarships, and apprenticeship programmes.
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