A wafer boat handling device, configured to be positioned under a process chamber of a vertical batch furnace. The wafer boat handling device comprises a main housing having a wall defining and bounding a wafer boat handling space, and a boat transporter comprising a wafer boat support for supporting a wafer boat and configured to transport the wafer boat to a cooldown position within the wafer boat handling space. A part of the wall adjacent the cooldown position is a wall part with a heat radiation surface absorptance of at least 0.60 so as to withdraw heat from the wafer boat which is in the cooldown position by means of heat radiation absorption.