Search Results

NorthLink Ferries, the lifeline ferry operator between the Scottish mainland and the Northern Isles, has long prided itself on the fleet of cutting edge ships it brought to the routes on which it has operated since 2002.

Now, the cruise quality conditions which the company provides for its four-legged clientele is at the forefront of technological innovation – drawing admiring glances from operators across Europe and as far afield as New Zealand.

NorthLink has invested £2.2 million in the design and construction of 48 double-deck livestock trailers – 46 at 40-foot and two at 20-foot plus associated trailers – which are believed to be unique in the maritime livestock transportation sector. Following consultation with third-party stakeholders such as mart operators and the Scottish Veterinary Service, additional investment has also gone into shore-side infrastructure with new lairage facilities at Lerwick, Kirkwall and Aberdeen Harbour being a particular feature of the improved livestock transportation infrastructure which is now coming into sharp focus.

Shipment of livestock to and from Orkney and Shetland to the Scottish mainland represents one of the genuinely ‘lifeline’ facets of the service provided by the company. Without a secure, welfare-friendly and reliable means of transporting stock to and from market the highly important agricultural sectors in the Northern Isles would be negatively impacted.
Throughout this summer NorthLink representatives will take to the road with their new livestock containers as a means of providing an ‘up close and personal’ viewing opportunity for the agricultural communities in the Northern Isles and the Scottish Mainland.
The NorthLink Livestock Container roadshow kicks off at the Turriff Show in Aberdeenshire on August 3-4. The visit to what is reckoned to be the largest two-day show in Scotland is followed by an appearance at Orkney’s premier agricultural event , The County Show, in Kirkwall on August 9 and concludes the following week at Shetland’s main agricultural event, the Cunningsburgh Show, on August 13.

NorthLink’s freight and logistics manager Eddie Barclay explains the rationale behind the decision to take the unique trailers out on their summer tour.

 “It’s our aim to engage even more closely than ever with our customers in the farming sector. The final design of the trailers was arrived at only after extensive consultation with our customers. They told us what they were looking for and after a long process of development, and a determination to get it right, we now have a livestock transportation system which ticks all of the boxes.

“NorthLink, the Scottish Government and others have invested heavily in the container and trailer system and also in the new livestock lairage facilities at our ports and we hope that over the course of the summer shows, when we will meet directly with our farming customers, we’ll be able to provide them with even more information on what is now available and to underline our commitment to the agricultural sector,” said Eddie.
The contract for production of the containers was awarded to Stewart Agricultural Ltd of Daviot, Aberdeenshire, with the ro-ro trailer contract going to Transtec Equipment Ltd of Kendal, Cumbria.

The contract, which is being completed on a rolling basis, began at the beginning of the year with the first few containers going into operation in May. To date 20 of the new containers have been delivered and 29 will be on station before the start of the Northern Isles’ peak livestock season this autumn.

Eddie adds: “The containers incorporate integrated feed and watering systems which have the ability to provide a continuous water and food supply to animals during our vessels passage times. They have capacity for 100 sheep and 24 cattle or 200 sheep.

“They comply with both EEC regulation 1/2005 and WATO legislation. Each container is individually approved by the State Veterinary Service as fit for purpose. The top deck is suitable for the carriage of sheep and the bottom deck can carry either sheep or cattle. Each deck has 3 x 4 metre pens,” he said.

NorthLink plans to stage a holiday competition at each of the three shows with visitors to the NorthLink display stand given the opportunity to enter a draw with the prizes being return trips for two, with car and cabin, on the Aberdeen – Kirkwall –Lerwick routes.