Bulk Distributor May/Jun 2020 May/June 2020 | Page 10

10 BULKDISTRIBUTOR Cleaning & Repair May/June 2020 Founded in 1990 as an inspection company by Klaus Dantz, Condaco’s story in recent years took off following the merger with container trading firm KTD-Mobilbox GmbH to form Condaco & KTD-M GmbH Condaco’s range of depot services includes any kind of repairs, modification The company will soon be ASME-certified Condaco growing and thriving Condaco continues to expand its services to customers, not just in the company’s home port of Hamburg but as far afield as China, South Africa and Brazil. Founded in 1990 as an inspection company by tank container expert Klaus Dantz, Condaco’s story in recent years took off following the merger with container trading firm KTD-Mobilbox GmbH to form Condaco & KTD-M GmbH. Now run by Klaus’s son Thorsten Dantz, Condaco’s range of depot services includes any kind of repairs, modification and other projects in the field of tank containers, nitrogen purging, coating repairs (the company is Hüni-certified), and inspection (on-/off-hire/in-service/ new build/depot training). The workshop repair area has capacity for approximately 50 tanks, and working in two shifts, the daily repair output is some 30-50 units. In 2017, Condaco teamed up with Hamburger Container- und Chassis-Reparatur Gesellschaft (HCCR) to offer an even more comprehensive service package. Under the partnership, HCCR (a subsidiary of Hamburg stevedore HHLA) concentrates on cleaning, handling and transporting the tank containers, while Condaco handles the repair of the tanks, in Both Condaco and HCCR are located along Hamburg Port’s Altenwerder Damm and particularly convenient for HHLA’s Container Terminal Burchardkai addition to modifications and other special requests. HCCR is able to clean some 40- 50 tanks per day, handling both foodgrade and chemical equipment. Both facilities are located along Altenwerder Damm in the heart of the port area and particularly convenient for HHLA’s Container Terminal Burchardkai (CTB), which has extensive handling and storage capacity for full and empty tank containers. “The co-operation is running better and better each day,” says Thorsten. “Our depot customers are all of the well-known operators and leasing companies from around the world. Another story of success for Condaco and HCCR is getting more and more Asian customers due to Condaco‘s growing Asian activities – especially in China, Vietnam, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).” A further big advantage from the co-operation is the excellent infrastructure of HHLA/HCCR, he adds. “There is no problem in receiving any type of container by ship, rail or road. This fact makes us unique in Hamburg area.” Services can be booked through either partner, offering in effect a single point of contact for either cleaning or repair, or both. Full service range For five years now Condaco has been offering all kinds of inspection services in China and South Africa, such that the company is in a position to cover the major manufacturing sites and depots for inspections 24/7. Importantly, says Thorsten, these inspections are carried out by employees of Condaco; the firm does not use leased staff from agencies or subcontractors. Most recently, Condaco set up a daughter company in Brazil, South America’s largest economy and important one for tank containers. However, the opening earlier this year coincided with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and so it is somewhat too early to give a proper view on its progress, although longer terms hopes are high. Nevertheless, Condaco is carrying on with certain other projects this year. It will soon be ASME-certified (American Society of Mechanical Engineers). “Getting this certification takes us to a the next level,” says Thorsten. “It means that we will be one out of very few in Europe who will be allowed to repair tank containers under ASME criteria.” Also, within the next 12 months Condaco will be accredited for DIN ISO17025. This will give the firm additional worldwide opportunities in inspecting and measuring. Last but not least, Condaco likes the idea of having a few owned trucks running some routes in Europe so that it can provide expanded trucking services. www.condaco.de cleaning your wörld Tank Cleaning Systems GLOBAL INSPECTIONS EUROPE . CHINA . BRAZIL SOUTH AFRICA . WORLDWIDE Food / Non-Food Cleaning Systems www.groninger.eu Parts & Service Overschieseweg 111 3044 EH Rotterdam The Netherlands Telephone +31 10 437 10 22 CONDACO always offers on-site support through our own teams of experts throughout Europe and internationally, primarily in China and South Africa. Furthermore, CONDACO draws up reports in cases of damage. CONDACO is registered as a court expert at the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce. As a certified Lloyd’s Register (LR) company, CONDACO offers periodic tests and CSC testing. Condaco & KTD-M GmbH - Altenwerder Damm 44 - 21129 Hamburg, Germany - +49 (0) 40 780 100 80 - www.condaco.de