SAL Heavy Lift – Company Portrait

SAL Heavy Lift specialises in sea transport of heavy lift and project cargo, and its Marine Projects Department focuses on developing and delivering installation solutions for the oil & gas and renewables sectors.

Thanks to our 40 years’ experience, integrated best practices in HSEQ, highly trained crews and innovative engineering teams, we provide safe, innovative, environmental friendly and reliable transport solutions.

At SAL Heavy Lift, we operate a global network of our own offices and representatives. This enables us to quickly provide excellent solutions to our clients.

Our History

2024 – Founding of JSI Alliance
Commercial joint venture with Jumbo Shipping and Intermarine.

2021 – Founding of Jumbo-SAL-Alliance
Commercial joint venture with Jumbo Shipping, the Dutch maritime heavy lift transport and installation contractor.

2020 – Acquisition of Intermarine
Intermarine with its Americas liner service is operated as an independent brand within the SAL Heavy Lift Group.

2017 – Founding of SAL Engineering
SAL Engineering is founded in Hamburg as independent engineering and consultancy house – a sister company to SAL Heavy Lift.

2017 – New ownership
The Harren & Partner Group becomes the new owner of SAL Heavy Lift. The company remains as its own brand and grows in fleet size.

2013 – Office relocation
SAL Heavy Lift moves to its new head office in Hamburg’s HafenCity. Logo modernised: it still depicts the "Hogendieckbrücke", an ancient draw bridge in Steinkirchen, Germany.

2013 – SAL enters offshore market

2012 – Renaming of the company 
SAL Schiffahrtskontor Altes Land GmbH & Co. KG is renamed SAL Heavy Lift GmbH.

2011 – “K” Line the sole shareholder of SAL 
After five years of successful partnership, the “K” Line Group acquires the remaining shares of the SAL Group and becomes the sole shareholder.

2007 – Joint Venture with “K” Line
SAL enters into a joint venture with the "K" Line Group in Tokyo.

2001 – Ownership by two families
2001-2011: SAL, now being jointly owned and managed by the Heinrich and Rolner families.

1984 – The brothers Hans and Claus Heinrich take over the management of three vessels from their father Paul Heinrich (his red flag marked with a "PH" is still flown on SAL vessels today). The first geared vessels with 2 x 9 t SWL cranes are ordered.

1980 – Opening of the Steinkirchen Office
Hans Heinrich establishes SAL’s Steinkirchen office in the “Altes Land” area. 

1865 – Delivery of First Vessel
SAL’s history can be traced back as far as 1865, when its first sailing vessel – the SS “Amoenitas” – is delivered to the Heinrich family by the German Sietas shipyard. Over the next 150 years, five generations of the Heinrich family continue their involvement in shipping.

SAL Heavy Lift is member of: