Its main task is to move containers around a terminal’s storage yard using a specialised vehicle: a travelling gantry crane known as a ‘cavalier’. Standing 16 metres tall, this machine can lift one or two containers to store them in large yards or, conversely, to transport them to the quay for loading onto a ship. It can also place them onto a lorry trailer or a train.

Qualities and skills

• Physical and visual abilities (and no fear of heights)
• Alertness and concentration
• Accuracy
• Compliance with safety regulations
• Availability and flexibility
• Carry out storage and retrieval operations, the transfer of loads, and the loading and unloading of vehicles using straddle carriers
• Carry out first-level maintenance on the equipment used
• Report any anomalies or difficulties encountered whilst carrying out duties

Education and training requirements

CQP: Specialised Dock Worker – Straddle Carrier Operator

Sectors and companies

Commercial seaport, cargo handling sector. In Le Havre, the cargo handling sector accounts for nearly 2,800 direct jobs across a wide range of sectors: containers, bulk cargo, road freight, etc.

Source: LH PORT CENTER – Further information at www.lhportcenter.com