On February 10th, the overall lifting operation of the 1600t gantry crane for Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, undertaken by the Equipment Institute of CSSC Ninth Design & Research Institute (CSSC NDRI), was successfully completed. The project commenced on August 5th, 2025.
As another major achievement of CSSC NDRI following the 700t shipbuilding gantry crane for Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, this equipment has been installed in the No. 1 dock of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding’s Changxing Shipbuilding Base. It is the core lifting equipment for the owner’s large-scale shipbuilding, and its performance and efficiency of operation are directly related to the capacity improvement and process upgrade of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding’s high-end shipbuilding.
With a total weight of approximately 3,500 tons and a span of 172 meters, it is the largest-tonnage gantry crane ever designed and manufactured by CSDC NDRI to date, and will also become a landmark “giant” at Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding’s Changxing Base.
This gantry crane is planned to be installed at Dock No. 1 of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding’s Changxing Base. With a rated lifting capacity of 1,600 tons, it adopts a single main beam structure, effectively achieving a lightweight design for the entire machine.
The crane is mainly used for the assembly of hull blocks and features functions such as lifting, hoisting, in-air turning of blocks, and slight horizontal rotation. It is arranged between two existing 600t shipbuilding gantry cranes and has high requirements for anti-collision measures between different equipment.
According to previous reports, Hudong-Zhonghua officially moved to its new site on May 19, 2025, and held a flag-raising ceremony at Donghua Square in the new plant area on Changxing Island on the same day, marking the official opening of the new plant area.
On December 2, 2025, the coating workshop (Phase II project) of the new plant area of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding was delivered, marking the completion of the second phase of the capacity gap filling project of CSSC Changxing Shipbuilding Base.
Public information indicates that Hudong-Zhonghua’s new facility is located along the southern coast of Changxing Island in Shanghai, covering a total construction area of 431.8 hectares and with a planned investment of RMB 18 billion (approximately US$2.507 billion).
The first phase of construction will cover 214.6 hectares, with a planned investment of RMB 8 billion (approximately US$11.14 billion). Construction projects primarily include a research and design building, a hull joint workshop, a curved block assembly and welding workshop, an outfitting module center, a coating shop, indoor dock No. 1, outdoor dock No. 2, a harbor basin and an outfitting pier. With a planned construction area of 460,000 square meters, the project will have an annual production capacity of six special vessels. Once completed, the project will greatly enhance Hudong-Zhonghua’s production capacity, increasing its capacity to build large LNG carriers from the current 6 vessels per year to more than 10 vessels per year.