Dumping Trains & Loading Ships

Handling coal at the busiest coal terminal on the west coast of the Americas.

[@JamesLowdenJr]

A very excellent presentation for me as I am attempting to model the McDuffie Island Drummond Coal Facility on my HO Gauge CSX Railroad. Thanks for the excellent presentation and the useful ideas for my scratch built Coal Loader.

[@dave3216]

Another Amazing video, Bruce. I can’t tell you how much I enjoy watching them. The scale is extraordinary. 👍👍👍👍

[@jimbos1567]

Thank you Nice Video, and best of all no music.

[@islandofice902]

Helped work on the 310/311 retrofits in Prince Rupert BC a few years back. Stunning place to work, truly walking amongst giants! Awesome video!

[@bruiseyis]

Daniel Morgan Glad you enjoyed it. I’ve worked there almost 20 years and though some old timers don’t give it a second thought, I have never lost my appreciation for the scale of the equipment and operations there. Every day is an adventure :)

[@TMandN]

My dad worked here 30 plus years 1977 on.Longshorman union for 40 plus years. Best place he said he worked at. Misses it still. Thanks for sharing this. He will love seeing this footage!

[@MS-37]

Where is this?

[@TMandN]

@@MS-37Surrey/Fraser docks

[@BearsTrains]

I found that absolutely mesmerizing, The size of the equipment is mind boggling.

[@chadsimmons6347]

i work on big construction jobs, the worst part is once they set up a big machine, you cant drive through that part of job and when they set up several more, you cant get anywhere

[@gvn2fly96]

That’s what she said.

[@johng5729]

The energy it takes to move energy, amazing equipment. Nowadays the oil & gas industry is so hard up that they had to lay-off half of Congress.

[@RuminatingWizard]

You think gas and oil own Congress? You must have never heard of "green" energy. They can't turn a light bub on without a government subsidy.

[@kswis]

I didn't see that coming. Entire car just dissappears it def looks like stuff out the movies. Very cool I enjoyed it. Thankyou for sharing

[@farrelljohnson]

Really enjoyable video. Thanks for sharing. I’d say the noise of those conveyors is immense standing next to them.

[@MrJackknob]

I know the terminals well. I used to do work out there back in 2012 for bout a yr. Got pix of me after a 10 hour shift, in the sealed cab of a vacuum truck, doing the roadways. I looked like a matchbox truck compared to some of the equipment out there. Westshore, Delta Port =) I've seen outside operations many times but it's awesome to see the dumping and loading processes. Thanks for the vids, Cheers

[@williamparsons1738]

Showgirls

[@josephbrennan4622]

Cheers Bruce great video, Well put together.

[@leadslinger49]

Great video, really interesting. Thank you. We've lost at least 5 coal fired generators in NE Illinois.

[@martinme6684]

very impressive video, Bruce, I can't tell you I watch it twice. I work for a mining belt covneyor factory from China. That's the reason I love the video so much, I think.

[@KSparks80]

Amazing engineering, & awesome video. Thx!

[@djfaber]

This video is great to run in the background. Love the ambient sound schema. Wonderful man!

[@bruiseyis]

cfaber Thanks:)

[@colvinator1611]

Another great example of man made engineering employed in managing God given resources. Thanks a lot, Colin ( UK ).

[@craignicholson505]

Dam Bruce that was amazing loved watching it all

[@horationorman5366]

The design in the wagons that they can be lifted and tipped over without being disconnected is genius!

[@bruiseyis]

Each rail car has a solid drawbar on one end, and a rotary knuckle on the other. The rotary end of the car will have a large stripe painted on it. That's so the train masters can visually verify that all the striped ends are facing the same direction. Two solid ends connected together is never a good thing. The dumper snaps drawbars like they are tooth picks. Conversely, if two rotary knuckles are connected and rolled over, they may not roll back upright with the car. Upside-down knuckles will quickly disconnect, setting up the brakes at the same time.

[@dannymclemore3553]

How are the air hoses not disconnected?

[@brad6044]

I use to deliver parts into the westshore terminals, those machines are nothing until you see them in real life. Amazing place.

[@jeancinq-mars2949]

Thank you so much for that complete well made video 👌

[@tomgiorgini9154]

great video, bruce you did a excellent job on the video thank you for your effort

[@kbno99]

Thanks for a great video and info on how long it takes to unload and load.👍👍

[@raincoast2396]

Believe me, ANY work around coal is dirty, gritty, grimy and gets everywhere. Literally.

[@slobberpuss8261]

Yeah but it washes off with soap and water and pays damn good.

[@keithklingensmith2955]

I love to watch these kind of videos. Keep'em coming.

[@bruiseyis]

Thanks Keith. I've got another one coming soon...

[@joe25rs]

Great video! Thank you!

[@reeferman502]

Wetsore or Westshore for sure.I did a few years there..Now I work at Deltatraz next door. It's a bit cleaner there.I was there when it was all manual operations including Dumpers 31 and 32...For some real fun trim a hatch at Berth 1 by yourself.

[@jayadinash9102]

I used to drive by this place when going to the Tsawwassen ferry terminal south of Vancouver.

[@superfly3011]

Where is this?

[@WhiteRockBoy]

great video, It's interesting to see what's going on in the place I see all the time when on the ferries.

[@rafterman3712]

Roberts Bank BC Canada. The other offload facility is Neptune Terminal North Vancouver.

[@TracksideNW]

Fantastic video, thanks for sharing it.

[@brandoncarlson4188]

Great video. Thank you.

[@rogerb5615]

The one thing missing from this collection of equipment is a Hulett.

[@bruiseyis]

We don’t unload ships here, but good call on the Hulett. I would love to operate one. They look like an amusement park ride:)

Now I understand why the biggest Caterpillar dealer in the world is in British Columbia

[@deoncalitz7420]

I use to work the Richard's bay coal terminal south Africa mechanical engineer and Maintenance, stacker reclaimers

[@aandjwynn]

Awesome power! Thank you!

[@CaptjBelk]

Awesome video. I find this kind of stuff interesting. And after reading some of the comments i think it is great that you answer peoples questions. We have some big operations similar to this in Australia.

[@bruiseyis]

belkstar8585 Glad you enjoyed the vid. Yes, Australia has the largest coal terminals in the world with higher capacity conveyance systems.

[@hoofie2002]

@@bruiseyis also the Iron ore terminals in North West Australia are like this - possibly even bigger in size.

[@heavydutyrepair64]

That is so HEAVY DUTY I love it

[@TheAaron1976]

The size of that operation is impressive.

[@seang8420]

I was thinking the same way a lot of heavy iron

[@littlewazz]

do they stagger the filling on the port and starboard sides so the vessel does not roll over (capsize) ?

[@bruiseyis]

That’s a great question and the answer is absolutely yes. If the operator is not paying attention the ship can start listing very quickly. Particularly when they first arrive in a deballasted condition, they a like a cork in the water, with only a few tons offshore creating a huge list.

[@kurtismckemmie4850]

That job must be paying all the bills off at home. Great video.👍

[@fedupdomer5654]

definitely a lot of technique to being a chute operator. looks like it can be very satisfying

[@jimsonbrown9768]

That bucket wheel, or whatever it's called was mesmerizing to watch.

[@eaxnitro]

Stacker and reclaimer

[@AllanLoveJr]

FANTASTIC VIDEO.

[@fedupdomer5654]

its like an industrial ballet... i worked on a ship that was layberthed next to the csx newport news loop. i used to watch this operation all the time with a great view and they looked like dinosaurs grazing. seems like they had a different automated dump system though... the trains never stopped. the hoppers must have been tripped somehow automatically from the bottom as the train went through the facility at constant speed

[@tomgiorgini9154]

there are different ways to dump some a separated and dump individually some are left coupled and dumped individually as you saw here, others stay coupled and bottom dump two together or more, various ways

[@EntertainmentWorldz]

great video bro ❤❤❤❤

[@coloradostrong]

Really cool video , gives us an idea of the operation in Va. BTW , what do you do there ?

[@bruiseyis]

Terry Sessoms Maintenance Superintendant :)

[@susanhazelton6645]

This was amazing how this works Tks

[@studinthemaking]

What the terminal name on the west coast?

[@bruiseyis]

studinthemaking Westshore Terminals

[@jimp9884]

I operated a stacker/reclaimer when I was young, nothing like reclaiming "hot" coal (whole cab engulfed in a fire ball from the coal dust).

[@bruiseyis]

Jim P Yes that used to be a real problem with some thermal coal, but better pile management has resulted in far fewer incidents of hot coal. In those occasions we do handle hot coal, the machines are automated, with no on-board operator.

[@jimp9884]

@@bruiseyis PRB coal and 1980's resulted in a lot of hot coal reclaiming, I am sure it is not tolerated any more (just a 70 year old remembering the "good old days" ).

[@clearingbaffles]

Olivia Newton-John must be doing well to have her own ship!! 😂

[@harmanjeet50]

Can Anybody's tell me which quality of coal is this ? Like how much its GCV kncl and Prices

Metallurgical

[@railroad9000]

Impressive machinery!

[@williamlenoch1526]

Great video! No one has answered if this is Longview or Tsawwassen. Also it doesn't show if one car is dumped at a time or can the equipment handle more than that?

[@bruiseyis]

William Lenoch It’s beside the Tsawwassen ferry terminal in Delta BC. There are two dumpers, each one is double barreled, dumping 2 cars each cycle.

[@williamlenoch1526]

Bruce, Thank you. Awesome machinery!!

[@Duh6666666]

I find this whole process fascinating, how many ships use those same docks, and how do they control the (almost non-existent) coal dust?

[@bruiseyis]

Both berths are usually occupied by a ship 24 hours/day, 365 days/year. Water addition as well as dust inhibitors are added as required at various transfer towers.

[@Duh6666666]

@@bruiseyis Thanks for the info and the great videos!

[@abandonedrailwayscanada3271]

Cool video

[@BNforever2009]

That's a nice video. How many loaded coal hoppers does it take to fill a barge?

[@steelmaniacwi]

600 coal cars to fill one 1000 footer on the Great lakes

[@cliffnelson1174]

I did not know that the cars stay coupled when rotated like that....that was some genius thinking there.

[@ewhip2894]

Awesome video

[@bogywankenobi3959]

at 3:00 - how does it flip the car like that without destroying the coupling?

[@bruiseyis]

Bogy Wan Kenobi Each rail car has a fixed knuckle on one end and a rotary on the other. The stripe on the car denotes the rotary end and every train is checked to ensure all the stripes are aligned on the same end.

[@stanfordwilliams9517]

This is very similar to the system that we had in Ashtabula, Ohio.

[@clearingbaffles]

Stanford Williams back in the 70’s the Navy had an Oiler AO-51 named Ashtabula we called her bldg 51 as I never saw her leave the pier in Pearl Harbor in the 2 years I was stationed there

[@inkslinger6156]

Love video. My question is does knuckles turn while unloading? Or explain it please. Thank you

[@bruiseyis]

Daniel Barry Yes, one knuckle is a rotary and the other is fixed. You’ll notice that all of the rail cars have a stripe painted on one end; that denotes the rotary end. All the trains are checked prior to dumping to ensure the stripes are aligned on the same end. The dumpers snap solid knuckles like pretzels otherwise.

[@inkslinger6156]

Thank you. Again I enjoyed the video. Im a trucker and hauled coal before but never ask any questions about trains in some of the places I dumped in.

[@wojciechkozlowski6147]

Nice one mate how long it takes to load this boat ? At least 60000 t init , 3 days ?

[@bruiseyis]

2-3 days for cape ships. 1 day for 60,000 panamax no sweat...

[@insomniader1796]

How much capacity is there loading rate?

[@rickszabo4312]

Awesome vid. How do they get a precise measure of coal that's been loaded .

[@bruiseyis]

Both dumpers, all stacker/reclaimers, and all ship loaders are equipped with moving beltline scales. These scales can have discrepancies due to miscalibration, failed rollers, etc, but they are accurate enough for general loading purposes. When the ship has 2000 to 4000 tones by scale remaining to completion, a marine surveyor calculates the remaining cargo to be loaded. He does this by looking at the forward, midship, and aft draft marks (plimsol lines) on the ship, tests the water density, dips all tanks and calculates the weight of onboard fuel oil, fresh water and ballast water. Using this data along with the ships log tables, they can calculate accurately how much coal is in each hold. He informs the loading foreman the amounts required in the trim hatches (usually 2 & 8), and once that is loaded he completes the final survey. The surveyors are independent and represent both the buyers and sellers of the coal. The final survey figures are usually within a fraction of a percentage of the scale figure however if there is a large discrepancy, that indicates a scale needs servicing/calibration.

[@rickszabo4312]

Thanks Bruce for taking the time to educate me.

[@Whipple1]

Bruce Doucette nicely put. Thanks.

[@daveanderson2316]

I'm sure this is probably a bit too technical of a question for a lot of you, but why at (7:35) does it have the scoopie thingy and the spitter outter on the same end? I wanna get it.... I just don't. ..

[@bruiseyis]

Dave Anderson When stockpiling a train, the coal runs from the dumper down a yard belt that the machine straddles, and up the boom belt. The bucket wheel doesn’t come into play. When it comes time to reclaim the same coal to load it on a ship, the boom belt direction is reversed, and now the bucket wheel is engaged, dropping the reclaimed coal onto the boom belt, which then transfers to the main yard belt, and then off to whichever berth it’s intended for. There are 4 stacker/reclaimer machines straddling main 4 yard belts. When dumping a train directly to the ship, (which is ideal because it saves stockpiling and then reclaiming afterwards), the coal still travels down the yard belt through the stacker/reclaimer, but the machine doesn’t do anything. Each machine has 3 modes of operation; Stack, Reclaim, and Through mode. Hope that helps.

[@daveanderson2316]

Bruce Doucette perfect, excellent video, I found it quite fascinating. Thank you!

[@bohhica1]

Great videos, don’t see anything like this in lower states.

[@johnhutchinson2981]

Newcastle NSW Australia is the biggest coal exporting port in the world. We send coal to China, japan, South Korea, Tiawan, India and anybody else who would like to buy our top quality black coal.

[@TheRantingCabbie]

As I was watching the train cars being turned upside down to be emptied, I got thinking about the couplers. Do they have a special type of draw bar. Like perhaps round instead of square.

[@kramerfarms1]

It's called a rotary coupler

Swivels like a fishing lure

[@comradeyuri8492]

I just gotta ask, where is this port ?

[@bruiseyis]

Comrade Yuri Vancouver BC, Canada

[@comradeyuri8492]

Thank you sir, I had thought not in USA.

[@davidhead5943]

How many hours do it take to load a ship up from start to finish ?

[@bruiseyis]

Panamax vessels can be loaded in under 24 hours while Cape class ships can take 2-3 days. It all depends on how many sources we feed the berth with. Direct hitting trains is more efficient than reclaiming from stockpiles.

[@dwetick1]

The coal industry is the cause of the GE locomotive business going south. The first GE locomotives were built to ferry coal from the WV mines to the big coal port at Hampton roads.

[@chimai001]

how much capacity are all coal-terminal area? million tons or more?

[@bruiseyis]

Westshore Terminals ships 30 million tonnes annually.

[@jiveturkey9993]

@@bruiseyis how many of these coal terminals are there in that region?

[@jackking5567]

Thanks for sharing the vids. There are so many anti-coal people out there yet it's a hugely important part of energy production. If dealt with correctly, coal can be clean and very productive.

[@bruiseyis]

Jack King So true, and let’s not forget about metallurgical coal used in the production of steel. Met coal comprises the majority of our exports.

[@jacquesblaque7728]

It's not so much that folks are "anti-coal" as they strongly prefer MUCH cleaner, ideally renewable, energy sources. The CO2 does VERY bad things, from ocean acidification to climate change/seal-level rise. Heavy metals in ash not a PLUS.

[@ralphaverill2001]

There is no such thing as "clean" coal. Even if you could remove all the toxins from combustion, you are still left with tons and tons of CO2. And then there is the ash left from combustion. That contains nothing but serious toxins and there is nothing to be done with it but store it and hope it doesn't leak. Next one is left with extracting the coal. Contemporary methods include moiuntain top removal which creates millions of cubic yards of useless tailings tossed into stream valleys which slowly leach out heavy metals into the water table. Coal is the filthiest, most socially expensive form of energy there is.

[@ethanlamoureux5306]

@Ralph Averill You’re spreading anti-coal and AGW propaganda. CO2 is not a pollutant, it is as natural as oxygen and carbon. Plants need CO2 to survive. Coal is simply the buried remnants of plants, and burning it releases the CO2 which was absorbed by those plants while they were alive. If there are toxins in coal, are they not the same ingredients found in plants everywhere?

[@jacquesblaque7728]

Ethan Lamoureux- Nonsense. You're talking pure propaganda, vice truth. It's all in the concentration (of CO2.) That's been rising for some time- do a little study into the effects of that. Coal also contains whatever debris was intermingled; the toxins there are well understood. You're blowing smoke at us.

[@mike196425]

Holy crap, I thought they opened up a chute on the bottom but that big son of a gun tips it like a toy.

[@bruiseyis]

Yes it's a much quicker process than bottom dumping.

[@coveredbridgeman4916]

What Year & Where was Video Taken

[@bruiseyis]

2018, Westshore Terminals at the Port of Vancouver, Canada

[@jiveturkey9993]

I don't know how many of these terminals there are in that area but Wikipedia says one of them (Neptune bulk carriers) moves 24 million tons annually.

[@Zewestcoaster]

Could you please post a video of the train car couplers when the car tips over for emptying? I see the air hose stays attached with enough length to rotate around, just trying to see how the coupler works when rotating around. I always thought they were fixed in place...

[@TheNemosdaddy]

Special couplers that have a rounded shank and a special draft gear. New faster unloading bottom dump cars are taking their place over time. Rotary cars take a 33 in end airhose instead of a 22 in. Standard.

[@tomgiorgini9154]

he gives you an excellent shot of the couplers right in the beginning

[@kenhollman5620]

Real feat of engineering ausom

[@orionharmon6017]

11:00 Whoa that machine looks cool when it picks up the dirt.

[@jimbos1567]

I think it's either coal or taconite.

[@orionharmon6017]

@@jimbos1567 Taconite I have no idea what that is 🤷‍♂️

[@jimbos1567]

@@orionharmon6017 Taconite is a form of semi refined iron ore which is then pressed into pellets for ease of transport. I watched the video again, and realized it was coal. Thank you for the interest Orion.

[@orionharmon6017]

@@jimbos1567 𝘓𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘦 ☺🙏🙇💙

[@orionharmon6017]

@@jimbos1567 𝘐 𝘥𝘰 𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥, 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘊𝘰𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘳 𝘛𝘢𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘊𝘰𝘢𝘭.

[@alannobody2067]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing, I take it that's Roberts Bank?

[@bruiseyis]

Alan nobody Thank you. Yes, this is Westshore Terminals at Roberts Bank.

[@marthafast6613]

I’ve been close. We had a wonderful stay on Orcas Island several years ago. Love seeing this heavy equipment.

[@lathamarea1437]

walking in coal dust yet no masks..that makes sense

[@jamesbeckwith3639]

Excellent video... could have done with a bit more lighting in a lot of places as I could hardly see what was going on in a lot of places

[@bohhica1]

Where is this being shipped to?

[@bruiseyis]

bohhica1 Japan and Korea take a lot but the terminal ships to countries all over the world.

[@rafterman3712]

oh heck; I forgot there is one in Prince Rupert too

[@petermcgreevy6386]

I knew of a case where the bucket wheel fell off caused by the bucket hitting the hard ground not the fines . Over a period of time the main shaft give way.

[@tomgiorgini9154]

there are bucket wheel excavators that dig thru the dirt not just coal piles

[@busoldmanphil7293]

Almost 4 minutes to dump one car? That's over 6 hours for a 100 car train. That can't be.

[@bruiseyis]

Bus Old Man Phil Both dumpers are double barrels, rolling 2 cars each dump cycle. 4-5 hours to dump 150 car train on average.

[@johnchow5693]

West shore terminal in Vancouver bc . I can see the bc ferries terminal

[@faerieSAALE]

I find these massive industrial machines - TERRIFYING - I WOULD NOT WANT TO BE ON THE GROUND NEAR THEM AS THEY OPERATE.

[@marknorthrup7646]

I wonder if this loading of coal into ships can still be done during heavy rain. Is there a way for water to drain out if it gets in the hold?

[@marknorthrup7646]

This seems like it would take two days to fill a big ship. Why can't they use more than one nozzle assembly? I don't know anything about this process.

[@bruiseyis]

The rains have no impact on loading. The stockpiles of coal are outdoors and exposed to Vancouver's rain-soaked winters. The coal is bought and sold with an allowable moisture content, that is continuously sampled during loading.

[@bruiseyis]

@@marknorthrup7646 It only takes a couple of days to load even the largest cape class ships. The rates shown in the videos are dialed back to 2000 tonnes/hour for more accurate hatch trimming. Regular loading is usually in the 6000 TPH range. Yes more loaders would be faster but would also require the supporting infrastructure to feed it on the back end.

[@kittensausage5901]

Ok. How do they flip a train car without disconnecting the coupler?

[@bruiseyis]

Kitten Sausage On one end of each car is a rotary knuckle, and the other a fixed drawbar. So it swivels. If two cars are aligned incorrectly, that is solid to solid, it snaps in two when the cars roll over, and the train comes apart.

[@richarddecker9515]

Impressive

[@philbox4566]

Not unlike Hay Point near Mackay on Queensland's coast.

[@peterkordziel7047]

Some how it just doesn't hold a candle to the old Hulet coal unloaders in Ohio, anybody else agree?

[@BNforever2009]

It must take 4 100 car coal trains to fill up a big ship like that.

[@tim5158]

I guess coal dust isn’t harmful or dangerous to these loading workers health. I was amazed by the amount of coal dust that accumulated on the deck in such a short time and has no effect on the workers.

[@johann5633]

I noticed that too. Apparently no problem now for workers and management, but 20 years or so later it's called black lung disease and devastating our Appalachian American former coal miners at a cost of millions.

[@55VickyV]

I notice they were not wearing breathing protection even though I could see coal dust in the air. It should be a rule!

[@chadperreault6237]

this is west shore terminal in Vancouver, all the coal here is not used for energy generating purposes. This coal is used in the production of steel.

[@bruiseyis]

Chad Perreault That was the case at one time, but now It’s actually about 60% met and 40% thermal coal :)

[@chadperreault6237]

wheres all the thermal coming from? i know teck supplies the met

[@bruiseyis]

Chad Perreault Signal Peak Coal, Cloud Peak Coal, and Decker Coal, all out of Montana’s Powder River Basin.

[@chadperreault6237]

oh right, i remember hearing about the US shipping coal up to be sent out through the Vancouver port

[@chadperreault6237]

how many trains do you see a day?

[@trainlover123trainsrock]

14:17 my boss: didn’t you know there is no smoking here?!? Me: no there was no notice that says “no smoking”. The no smoking sign: (muffled) IM BEHIND THIS LOAD OF COAL MOTHERF-

[@joelouis226]

Whats the tonnage per hour on that thing. Amazing machinery.

[@bruiseyis]

The stacker/reclaimers are rated at 8000 tonnes/hr, and the loading berths at 6000 tph

[@Jim-hw1xr]

Where is this?

[@bruiseyis]

Vancouver BC

[@mark__whitfield]

11:40 Balls!

[@wayned4271]

Why don't they just load the coal into containers at the coal mine and ship the containers like other freight. Would save a huge amount in equipment and handling costs. Yeah the containers would have to different than what they use now but that should be easy to design. Maybe the containers could be design to be used for both freight and ore/coal.

[@chuckfanning5185]

Waisted space with containers, the total area a container takes up is less space for coal/ore. In freight like this, you want it low in the water too. Top-heavy equals roll over and capsize. so you end up transporting less and use more space for storage, both on and off the water.

[@chrisbouws6861]

@@chuckfanning5185And do not forget that, after the containers have been emptied, they have to be returned for future use . . .