A new hi-tech material handling system, which Asia Airfreight Terminal (AAT) installed at its recently opened terminal 2 at Hong Kong International Airport, enables automated storage and retrieval of cargo from up to 13 levels of steel racking, a company spokesman said.

Nelson Lee Yiu-wing, AAT’s general manager for planning and services, said by using the latest computer applications, the terminal will be able to handle the equivalent of 20 tonnes of cargo per square metre per year, making it one of the most effi cient facilities in the world. “In Hong Kong, land is expensive, so the stacking of cargo has to be vertical. For material handling, we therefore needed the latest in design and automation and now we have a system that goes through the entire building from the ground fl oor up,” he added.