BELOW THE HOOK
Hooks are not the only way to attach a load. They may not even be the best way. Below the hook attachments are many and various, and can provide alternatives. Julian Champkin reports.
HANG IN THERE
B
elow the hook (BTH) attachments can address various different needs. They can help with awkwardly shaped loads, especially heavy loads or loads in either or both of those categories that are also fragile or have no obvious lifting points. One-off designs are used for large and massive loads; they are as useful and as used for small, even tiny loads – an example might be in repetitive operations on a production line where BTH vacuum lifters can come into their own. BTH devices can open or close automatically,
removing the necessity for an operator to approach the load or even the need to climb onto it; to attach it to the crane before a lift; or to release it from the same crane after it is set down. That and other functions – turning the load or upending it for example – can also be part of the wider digital control and automation of production operations. The nature of an automatic BTH system of course depends on what the operator wants it to do. Operational efficiency and safety may require a hook to open automatically once its load is placed on the ground and then remain open. Alternatively, efficiency and safety may be better served by a hook that, by default, releases the load
once it is on the ground and then closes automatically as the crane lifts the now-empty hook. Either option saves an employee having to climb a perhaps hazardous position close to or onto the load to manually release it. Whether a dangling-open or dangling-closed hook is the more desirable is down to the application and the end user. Specialist manufacturers Elebia have introduced
their latest automatic quick-release hook, the R2. It is designed for demanding industrial lifting operations and it delivers either alternative. It is available in two spring options, set at the time of order: ‘Normally Open’ and ‘Normally Closed’.
In the Normally Closed version, when the load is back on the ground the operator via a remote handheld unit sends the release command. The R2 hook unlocks and the sling detaches. As the crane rises an altimeter detects the ascent and at a predetermined height closes and locks the hook ready for the next lift. It removes the need for manual hook closure, reduces handling steps and improves overall efficiency and safety. Some customers may prefer to have the hook
remain open after depositing the load. For them, the Normally Open version of the R2 would be the choice: the sling releases as before upon sending the release command but the hook remains open; it must be closed manually before the next lift. The hook is powered by a plug-and-play battery.
Right: Elebia’s R2 hook has a plug-and- play battery.
Opposite page top: Custom-made C-hook from Lloyds Beal …
Opposite page bottom: … showing Green Pin shackle.
20 | October 2026 |
www.hoistmagazine.com
There is no need to uninstall it to charge it – the operator simply carries a spare battery and swaps it in directly on the hook. This, says Elebia, is unique in the market and a key differentiator. The battery powers hook opening and closing, and high-brightness multi-coloured LEDs on the hook that show its status – blue for ready to lift; once the load is suspended the LED turns off, meaning that no further orders will be accepted. Green means the hook is unlocked; red shows it’s locked. The colours are visible even in direct sunlight. The fail-safe design cannot release a load while it is suspended. The R2 has a 2,000kg maximum WLL. A low-power,
low-torque motor prevents unlocking under loads exceeding 20kg. If the battery depletes while the load is locked the load remains securely held.
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