A manufacturer of equipment for refineries and power stations required an upgrade to its steel-handling cranes in Germany

A manufacturer of equipment for refineries and power stations required an upgrade to its steel-handling cranes in Germany.

Stahlbau Schauenberg, a Kirchzarten, Germany-based manufacturer of industrial equipment for refineries, chemical plants and power stations, has purchased two 10t overhead crane systems from Innokran, fitted with SH 50 wire rope hoists from Stahl CraneSystems.

The manufacturer operates across six locations, using between 20,000 to 25,000 tonnes of steel each year to build constructions for industrial plants, with up to 7,500t being used to build individual process or refinery furnaces.

At Stahlbau Schauenberg’s headquarters and engineering, production and assembly facilities at Kirchzarten, steel sheets and tubes for assembly and processing are stored outside, with new material delivered almost every hour. Crane systems from Innokran fitted with Stahl CraneSystems hoists have been used to handle the steel since 2009; “Our customer is very satisfied with the systems and hoists, which is why we were also contracted in 2018 to modernise the outdoor crane system,” explained Klaus Fetzer from Innokran.

This outdoor crane system was installed in the 1970s and, with a lifting capacity of 6t, was no longer suitable for the increased weight of materials being handled; the hook height of the crane systems was also no longer sufficient. Innokran and Stahlbau Schauenberg worked together on the project, says Fetzer: “As a specialist in steel construction, Schauenberg itself carried out the necessary modification of the crane runways to the required higher safe working load. Innokran then installed the cranes, hoists and technology.”

The two new double-girder overhead cranes, which have spans of 20m and capacities of 10t, were jacked up by 500mm to reach a hook height of 7.5m. Both cranes were fitted with SH 50 wire rope hoists from Stahl CraneSystems, with the compact design and small approach and headroom of the hoists optimising space. The hoists, produced in Künzelsau, are designed for continuous outdoor use, with the motors and controls heated by standstill heaters to ensure smooth operation at temperatures down to -20°C, as well as featuring rain protection roofs.

The cranes provide lifting speeds of 1.3/8 m/min, a cross travel speed of 5/20 m/min, and a long travel speed of 10/40 m/min. The new systems also offer the potential for further benefits, says Fetzer: “In the future, we want to save valuable handling time by using magnetic lifting beams to fasten the sheets instead of fastening them manually with the help of chains. Innokran has therefore prepared the system with cable reeling drums and lockable load hooks for installation of a magnetic system.”

Another beneficial feature of the new system is its statics, says Fetzer: “In order to reduce the lateral forces acting on a crane runway axis, we have equipped the endcarriages of the cranes with horizontal guide rollers and flangeless wheels. In this way, travel resistance and wear can also be minimised.”

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