How Scandinavian Engineers Reinvented the Translifter

From RoLux to the Electric e-Master

In warehouses around the world, forklifts lift pallets weighing a few hundred kilograms.

In RoRo terminals, machines handle cargo units weighing up to 120 tons.

The principle may look similar. The engineering challenge is not.

These machines are known as Translifter / Flexmaster, and although they remain largely unnoticed outside the maritime logistics sector, they play a critical role in keeping global supply chains moving.

Their evolution is also a story of Scandinavian engineering, spanning more than four decades and culminating in a new generation of electrically powered machines.

A Scandinavian Beginning

The origins of Translifter / Flexmaster technology can be traced back to Sweden in the 1980s.

Engineers working within Electrolux developed a machine designed to move containerized cargo more efficiently within port environments.

Inspired partly by the operational logic of the Euro-pallet system, the concept applied a similar lifting principle to much larger cargo units used in Roll-on/Roll-off (RoRo) shipping.

The machine became known as RoLux.

The concept proved promising and was eventually spun out of Electrolux, with engineers continuing to develop the technology independently. RoLux demonstrated that the lifting principle could scale to heavy-duty terminal operations, laying the foundation for what would become an entire product category.

From Concept to Industry Standard

Around the early 2000s, engineers began simplifying the RoLux concept to create machines better suited for modern port operations.

In Finland, Liftec introduced the Translifter, focusing on robustness and operational reliability.

Later, the Danish company Novatech entered the market after encouragement from customers who saw the value of alternative technical solutions and competitive innovation.

Novatech developed its own machine known as the Flexmaster.

For more than 15 years, the Translifter and the Flexmaster competed across RoRo terminals worldwide. Each system represented a different engineering philosophy, yet both addressed the same fundamental challenge: efficiently lifting and moving heavy cassettes within port environments. Competition drove innovation, and over time both machines became highly refined.

When Two Worlds Became One

A major turning point came in 2017.

The companies and their technologies were brought together under NT Group.

For the first time, engineers working with both technologies could combine their experience and knowledge.

Instead of continuing two parallel product lines, the goal became clear: create a machine that incorporated the best elements from both systems.

The result was the FMT-MK1.

The name reflects its heritage — Flexmaster + Translifter — and symbolizes the merging of two engineering traditions.

Behind this platform lies nearly half a century of accumulated experience in cassette-handling technology.

Through hundreds of refinements — improved welding techniques, optimized machining processes, better component selection, and advanced control software — the MK1 became the most reliable and efficient Translifter ever built.

“The devil is always in the details.”

Electrifying a Machine Without an Engine

While the MK1 represented the most advanced generation of traditional Translifters, a new challenge was emerging across the global port industry:

Sustainability.

Electrification has transformed many forms of transport and industrial equipment, but Translifters presented a unique challenge.

The machine itself traditionally does not have an engine.

Instead, the hydraulic power required for lifting operations normally comes from the terminal tractor pulling the machine. A hydraulic pump mounted on the terminal tractor generates system pressure, which is then transferred through hoses to the Translifter.

Only once sufficient pressure has been built can the lifting cylinders begin raising the load.

Although reliable, this system introduces a delay into every lifting cycle.

In busy terminals where lifts are repeated hundreds of times per shift, these delays accumulate into significant operational inefficiencies.

Rethinking the Hydraulic System

Engineers at NT Group approached the challenge from a different perspective.

Instead of relying on hydraulic power generated externally by the terminal tractor, they redesigned the Translifter so that the machine itself carries its own electrically powered hydraulic system.

The hydraulic architecture was also fundamentally re-engineered.

Hydraulic components are now positioned directly near the lifting cylinders, where the oil is actually consumed. This significantly reduces the time required to build pressure and initiate a lift.

The system also operates with a two-stage hydraulic configuration, combining low-pressure and high-pressure operation to achieve both speed and lifting force.

In practical operation, lifting is up to 30 seconds faster.

Recovering Energy

Another key innovation lies in energy recuperation.

When lowering heavy loads, traditional hydraulic systems dissipate the potential energy as heat.

The e-Master captures a large portion of this energy and feeds it back into the system.

Through this regenerative approach, more than 50 percent of the energy used in lifting operations can be recovered.

This represents a significant improvement in overall efficiency while reducing the total power demand of the machine.

The e-Master

The result of these innovations is the FMT-e, also known as the e-Master.

At first glance, the machine looks familiar. The lifting principle and overall structure remain recognizable to operators who have worked with Translifters / Flexmasters for years.

But internally the machine has been fundamentally transformed.

Electric power replaces diesel-driven hydraulic energy. Energy recuperation dramatically improves efficiency. And the redesigned hydraulic architecture enables faster, more responsive lifting operations.

The result is a machine that is not only cleaner, but also more productive.

A New Step for RoRo Ports

Ports around the world are under increasing pressure to reduce emissions while maintaining high operational efficiency.

Solutions that combine sustainability, productivity and reliability will play a key role in shaping the future of maritime logistics.

The development of the e-Master demonstrates how decades of engineering experience can be combined with modern technologies to meet these challenges.

Sometimes innovation comes from creating something entirely new.

But sometimes innovation comes from rethinking how a familiar machine works — and quietly making it better.

ERIK KNUDSEN

Chairman & Founder
NT GROUP – NTLiftec / Novatech