When a ship docks at Hamburg’s Altenwerder container terminal the crane operators start picking up boxes with their grabbing equipment and swinging them on to the quayside, much as terminal workers have done ever since goods started to be shipped in containers in the 1950s.
However, when a crane operator puts down his load, it becomes clear how far technology has come. The boxes are picked up by an automated crane and swung on to driverless trucks which glide into position just as they are needed. The containers’ lifting and stacking are then handled entirely by machine until they are loaded on to the lorry or rail truck that will take them away.
