[INDUSTRY NEWS]
Rope and Sling Provides Spreader Beam Lifting Rig for Forth Road Bridge Project
> Rope and Sling Specialists Ltd provided a below-the-hook solution to infrastructure management company Amey to lift a truck- mounted access platform during maintenance on the Forth Road Bridge in Scotland. Amey, on behalf of Transport Scotland,
undertakes services associated with the operation, management and maintenance of the Forth Road Bridge and its approach roads. It carried out overnight repairs on the bridge last month (December). Rope and Sling provided a spreader beam lifting rig to lift a 35t Bronto Skylift (a mobile elevating work platform or MEWP) provided by Nationwide Platforms. Access was required to make a repair to a
support truss on the bridge’s northern pier. The pier from the north tower is sited on the Mackintosh Rock, a whinstone outcrop that made for an ideal foundation during construction. Rope and Sling hired to the project a modular spreader beam type MOD70H with two MOD34 beams, manufactured by Modulift, with various round slings and shackles from its hire stock. The rig was assembled in line with computer-aided design (CAD) drawings of the MEWP, sent to Rope and Sling by Nationwide Platforms. The lifting rig was used below the hook of a barge crane—the bridge spans the Firth of Forth—that lifted the truck-mounted hydraulic platform onto the barge from the shore, travelled to the site, then lifted it to the base of the bridge from where it would lift personnel, stabilized by outriggers. Upon completion of the work, the rig was employed again to return the MEWP to the barge, remove it from the scene by water and return it to shore.
Steve Hutin, managing director, Rope
and Sling Specialists, said: “We only had half a day to design the assembly of the rig and deliver it to the site but we were able to use CAD drawings from Nationwide to calculate the center of gravity—the load was heavier at one end—and we knew we could use the outriggers as pick up points.” He added: “It is always an honor to be
involved on landmark infrastructure projects. The main towers of the Forth Road Bridge rise up over 150m above high water level. It is an impressive feat of engineering; the bridge has a main span of over 1,000m between the two main towers and the side spans that carry the deck to the towers are each over 400m long. We have worked with Amey on the bridge in the past and we recognize their requirement for safe and efficient engineering below the hook of lifting applications on the site.” In other news, Rope and Sling Specialists
Ltd has taken delivery of a new 1,000t Sahm Splice hydraulic press that will increase its machining capability and enable the business to manufacture 55t safe working load slings, with the oil, gas and crane rental markets in mind. The new press was delivered to lifting and rigging company Rope and Sling’s Bridgend, Wales headquarters in December where it joins an older unit, made by Talurit, that is used to manufacture 35t safe working load slings. The Talurit unit could work with 52mm diameter wire rope but the new machine can handle rope up to 64mm in diameter. The new unit from Sahm Splice is one of the biggest in the UK lifting industry and puts on the shop-floor over 50 years of German engineering expertise. Sahm- Seilklemme, known only as Sahm Splice since earlier this year, has produced and distributed products complementing the mechanical splicing of wire ropes since 1961. y
Elebia Hooks Lift Rolls-Royce Engines for Aerospace
> Rolls Royce is using Elebia automatic hooks during lifting and rigging operations at its Seletar Assembly and Test Unit (SATU) in Singapore, where Trent engines are assembled and tested. The facility, which completes assembly of large engines primarily for aircrafts, has recently taken delivery of its second e10 hook and is already considering placing orders for additional units. The hooks work with overhead cranes to lift modules and engines. Trent engine modules weigh between 1t and 2t, while a complete engine is 5t. Heavy tooling is also incorporated into many lifts, weighing between 25kg and 50kg.
The state-of-the-art facility is designed
to allow simultaneous assembly and testing of Rolls-Royce Trent 900 and Trent 1000 aero engines. At full capacity SATU can produce up to 250 engines per year. The Trent 900 aero engine was developed for the Airbus A380 family and delivers the lowest lifetime fuel burn in addition to its excellent environmental attributes. The Trent 900 has been selected by 11 of the 17 airlines who operate the aircraft. Bok Thye Boon, production leader at
Rolls-Royce’s SATU facility, said: “The Elebia hooks are simple to use and keep crane operators and those responsible for rigging at a safe distance when connecting modules and engines to lifting equipment. Previously, when we joined the engine core to the fan case, our crane hoist was locked away for two days until the engine could be rotated to a horizontal position. Now, with the Elebia hook, we can free up the crane hoist for other usage. We particularly like the fail-proof safety features that prevent the hook from opening when a lift is taking place.” Boon, who is principally responsible for final engine assembly, explained that prior to
WIRE ROPE EXCHANGE JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2016 7
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