NEWS | PROJECT OF THE MONTH
WASTE NOT, WANT NOT
RHC Lifting completes high-tech crane installation at SUEZ’s Victoria Road site in London.
L
ifting specialists RHC Lifting has installed two fully automated handling cranes at utility operating contractor SUEZ ‘s
Victoria Road waste transfer site in London. The upgrade was accomplished over 18 months and will significantly enhance operations at the facility, which processes 140,000 tons of household waste annually from four West London Boroughs. Commissioned in the 1980s, Victoria
Road now boasts two state-of-the-art, 8t waste cranes, replacing the two original 1978 manually driven 7.5t Morris waste cranes, which had become obsolete. In 2022, RHC Lifting won the contract to
remove the existing cranes and supply and install two fully automated waste cranes to bring the waste handling at Victoria Road into the 21st century, whilst limiting the impact on the waste transfer operation. This upgrade ensures faster, safer and more reliable waste handling, with the
cranes operating at impressive speeds: 78m/min hoisting, 30m/min cross travel, and up to 100m/min long travel. “RHC Lifting has been involved in the installation of many overhead grab cranes but this was our first project modernising cranes in an existing plant. This project had many challenges, but RHC Lifting provided SUEZ with innovative solutions throughout. This project can be used as a template for the future modernisation of waste- handling plants,” said Philip Goodway, director and project manager, RHC Lifting. ‘After the first full week of the cranes running in fully automatic mode, the site has reported a 20% increase in waste handling throughput.” RHC Lifting selected Fayat to
manufacture the two new 8t waste cranes and their control system. Working closely with the factory in France, RHC Lifting ensured the new cranes met the requirements of SUEZ.
The new cranes are fully installed into the waste bunker.
Key innovations included on-crane
control equipment, Vahle power and encoder conductor bars, and a Siemens Scalance wireless system, significantly simplifying the installation process and reducing downtime. The cranes are controlled from a
new control room located within the administration block. Using 50” monitors showing the view from the bunkers, hoppers, tipping hall and yard, the user is able to select the modes of the cranes, including fully automatic, semi-automatic and manual operation as required to operate the site. Live 4K footage is displayed from 10
Mobotix cameras, including two thermal cameras for fire risk detection. To minimise disruption, the project faced tight installation windows, including a planned two-week shutdown in April 2023 to install a temporary steel roof and a three- week shutdown in April 2024 to enable the temporary roof to be removed, old cranes lifted out, new cranes lifted in, and a new roof section put in place. Despite the challenges, including the
RHC Lifting preparing to lift one of 1978 7.5t Morris waste crane. 8 | September 2024 |
www.hoistmagazine.com
site’s proximity to an RAF airfield and busy railway lines, the new cranes were installed, tested, and operational within the
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