MoorMaster™ berth unveiled at Port of Helsinki

The Port of Helsinki recently held an official opening ceremony for its new West Terminal 2 passenger ferry terminal, where our innovative MoorMaster™ automated mooring system moors large ferries safely, quietly, cleanly and efficiently.

"The new auto-mooring system will significantly speed up the mooring and unmooring of ships. For local residents, the system also has the benefit of reducing noise and emissions," according to a statement on the Port of Helsinki website. Read more about the system on the port's own website here.

The MoorMaster™ MM400E15 machines at the LJF berth will moor the new-build, 212m Tallink Megastar and the Tallink Star passenger ferries three times a day each. Mooring of these vessels takes a matter of seconds compared to conventional mooring that would take substantially longer. The introduction of the technology also removes hazardous mooring lines from the mooring process.

The development of West Terminal 2 included the construction of a new berths and a terminal building, passenger bridges and access roads; and is the largest single investment project undertaken by the Port in the past 10 years.

The opening ceremony was attended by a large number of guests, and a number of speakers, including Finland's Minster for Foreign Trade and Development, Kai Mykkänen; the CEO of the Port of Helsinki, Kimmo Mäki; the CEO of Eckerö Line, Taru Keronen; and the CEO of Tallink Silja, Margus Schults.

MoorMaster™ is a vacuum-based automated mooring technology that eliminates the need for conventional mooring lines. Remote-controlled vacuum pads recessed in, or mounted on the quayside or pontoons, moor and release vessels in seconds. MoorMaster™ units have completed an estimated 260,000 mooring operations at ferry, bulk and container handling, and lock applications worldwide. Click on the images and films below to see the system in action.