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Groupe Cayon relies on Cometto MSPE to move 85t transformer

Groupe Cayon used Cometto MSPE to transport a 85 t heavy and 6.4 m long transformer to the transformer substation in Gennevilliers for the French electricity generator group EDF.

The load made its first part of the journey by water on the Seine and then from the docks in Gennevilliers the transport was on land. Due to several obstacles on the short route, the final stage took three days.

“As a 6-axle version with power pack, the Cometto MSPE picked up the transformer on arrival at the quay. Thanks to the overall length of just 11.45 m, we had no problem getting to the ship’s mooring position,” explains Matthieu Lapczynski, project leader for special transport at Groupe Cayon. “The self-propelled vehicle also left behind various obstacles on the first section of the route.”

The freight was then reloaded onto a 4+6 low bed semi-trailer to go past the passage of two low bridges. Afterwards, the transformer was loaded back onto the Cometto MSPE to cover the final metres.

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Mammoet deploys a new location in Antwerp

In order to support the growth of the largest European oil and chemical cluster on the Port of Antwerp, Mammoet has decided to install a new facility. The site is adjacent to the large deep-water Liberty-dock (Bevrijdingsdok). Thanks to this new location, Mammoet Belgium will be able to offer services with a fleet of new cranes ranging from 40-ton to 500-ton, tower cranes and SPMT’s, followed by an increase of its workforce in Antwerp.

Paul Van Vuren, Managing Director for Mammoet Belgium explains, “It is our strategy to continuously build on our offering to our clients and deliver efficient and cost-effective solutions. We aim to achieve this in Antwerp by investing in people and resources to maximize the potential of our new dock-side location.”

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Marine Maroc uses Enerpac SL400 gantry to transport 130 t HP heaters

The international logistics company Marine Maroc has used its new Enerpac SL400 gantry to install high pressure heaters (HP heaters) of 130 t at the site of the Safi coal-fired power plant in Southwest Morocco. Marine Maroc was in charge of transporting the heaters from the port of Safi to the plant. Upon arrival at the plant, the Enerpac SL400 telescopic hydraulic gantry was deployed for the first time in order to lift them from hydraulic modular trailers.


Equipped with three stage lifting cylinders, the SL400 lifts up to 9.14 metres at the top of the third stage and can handle up to 408 ton at the top of the first stage. For Marine Maroc, the gantry is equipped with powered side shift units for ease of manoeuvring loads. In addition, the SL400 also features an Intelli-Lift wireless control system.


For Mohammed Belaidi, Technical Department at Marine Maroc: “The SL400 is an outstanding addition to our heavy lifting capability for many power plant projects where the gantry can be readily deployed both outside and inside the plant when space is limited.”


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Ale contracted to lengthen a cruise ship in Palermo, Italy

Ale has been tasked to lengthen the Grimaldi Roma cruise ship in Palermo, Italy. To install the new section, weighing around 2,540 t, Ale deployed skid shoes varying from 500 t – 1,000 t capacity, along with 96 axle lines of SPMT in a configuration of 4 x 2 file 24. The new section was transported by SPMT’s, while the ship cut section, weighing around 10,500 t was skidded across skid tracks so the new section could be installed. The ship originally measured 225 m and once the new section was installed another 30 m was added onto the ship.
Ale has been contracted to lengthen two cruise ships, the Grimaldi Roma and Barcellona. The project started in late 2018 and is expected to be completed by the end of June 2019.

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Collett delivers Super Grid Transformer to Lovedean Substation

Heavy transport specialist Collett & Sons successfully delivered the 169 tonne Super Grid Transformer from Portsmouth International Port to Lovedean Substation, as part of an upgrade programme to supply homes, hospitals, schools and businesses in the area. The project involved the Collett Projects and Heavy Lift Teams, who undertook all the pre-planning works including a detailed swept path analysis reports of the route.

The Collett Team discharged the Super Grid Transformer from the vessel at the Portsmouth International Port and loaded it to its 66m long and 5.3m wide Scheuerle girder bridge to began the 12 mile journey to the substation. Two ‘end-change’ operations were required and completed along the route effectively flipping the combination 180 degrees to allow further transport. The convoy travelled across Portsmouth, Cosham, Havant, Purbrook, Waterlooville and Horndean under police escort. Once arrived, the Heavy Lift Team began the final positioning of the cargo. Due to restrictions on the site, the team was not allowed to skid the transformer directly to its designated plinth, the Collett & Sons specialists designed and implemented a multi-directional system to skid the Super Grid Transformer over the bund wall onto a steel platform. Once situated on the platform the hydraulic skidding system was then repositioned at 90 degree angle allowing to complete the positioning.

The Team was also in charge of the 1040ft containers of ancillaries required for the project, taking full responsibility for all cargo, delivering complete transport logistics, including de-vanning and storage facilities.

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Bolloré Logistics engaged in Dakar’s Regional Express Train construction project

As a part of the “Emerging Senegal Plan”, launched by the President of the Republic and the Government of Senegal in 2014, the French company Eiffage has engaged the services of Bolloré Logistics for the Regional Express Train construction project that will connect Dakar city center to Blaise Diagne International Airport (AIBD) in less than one hour. The new railway will have two lines for passengers and an additional line uniquely used for freight transportation. Bolloré Logistics teams are in charge of the logistics operations of out-of-gauge packages, that contain 36-meter beams and 34-meter gateways, from discharge at port of Dakar to their delivery to the construction site in Bargny. These pieces, coming from Antwerp in Belgium, will be used for the construction of 11 routing bridges and 16 walkways between Bargny and Diamniadio.

The first six beams, measuring 36m in length and weighing 10 tons each, were delivered to the construction site in September and were discharged with two cranes of 40 and 50 tons. To transport the heavy lift cargo, two convoys with an extra-long trailer and a telescoping of 40-meters were required.

The duration of this contract should extend to the end of June 2019.

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ALE moves a 450t substation support tower in Spain

In Navarra, Spain, ALE has been requested by Nabrawind Technologies to find a bespoke engineering solution in order to heighten the prototype of the Nabralift self-erecting tower, one of the world’s highest wind towers. To move this 160m high and 450t tower, ALE used 12 axle lines of SPMT and 3 strand jack units for the heightening. “By providing this customised solution, our client can now how the means of developing onshore wind farms in the most cost and time effective method ever through possible. This is game-changing technology, specifically for those located on difficult-to-reach islands or mountainous sites. From our findings, we are already developing engineering processes to fulfil the requirements of future large-scale installations with an aim to develop two towers a week,” explained Project Engineer David Arias Blanco.

This project ended in September with ongoing discussions about future use of this prototype and technology. ALE was working alongside the client to develop the methodology used for this prototype for the future production of ind towers from 2019.

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ALE’s Mega Jack 300 performs in Kuwait

As a part of the Al Zafour Refinery Project EPC 2 and 3, Ale is providing onshore heavylifting solution that includes receiving pre-assambled pipe rack modules from barges at the project’s construction dock, where they are transported on SPTs over 4km to a staging area. Once at staging, the modules are raised to various heights using the new Mega Jack 300 system, which has 300t capacity per tower. According to the heavy lift specialist Ale the components of this system are compact and easy to handle on site, meaning that the re-configurations are made in as little time as possible. In addition, the jacking time has been reduced during the development phase, resulting in jack-up operations taking one or two hours.

“It was a proud moment for all of us to utilise this state of the art equipment in the Middle East for the first time. As it is compact and very effective, with high capacity, this opens a lot of opportunities in the region using this innovative technology,” said Binu K.T., Installation Manager for ALE’s Middle East branch.

A total of 188 modules, measuring up to 40m in length and weighing up to 2,100t, will be delivered to site.

 

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Al Faris lifts 426t precast girders for Dubai’s Route 2020 project

Following previous operations on the Dubai Metro Lines, the heavy lifting and transport specialist Al Faris, based in Dubai, handled the loading, transporting and lifting of precast girders weighing 426 t.

After careful calculations and precise analysis, it was decided to use a gantry system for lifting the girders due to problems caused by the confined space restrictions. At first the precast girders were loaded using a SBL900 gantry system on its 19-axle Goldhofer THP / SL trailer connected to a 680 horsepower heavy duty prime mover. The gantry was set up with a Liebherr 100t all terrain crane and forklift. The precast girders were then lifted and erected on the metro column by a 650t crawler crane with SSL2 configuration and 42m main boom. All the operations were performed at night to avoid road traffic and other obstacles.

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Volga-Dnepr Airlines succeeds in transporting of bottle-filling equipment for LS International Cargo GMBH

The Russian company Volga-Dnepr Airlines, dedicated to outsize and super-heavy transportation, has successfully delivered a Krones bottle-filling machine and a variety of additional equipment for LS International Cargo GMBH. The load consisted of 9 packages with a total weight of 58 t. The cargo measured 442 cbm with the largest pieces weighing 17.86 tonnes and 11.56 tonnes.  This operation was carried out using an An-124-100 freighter.

The cargo was loaded in Munich, where Krones’ nearest production facility in Germany is located, to be delivered to Entebbe, Uganda for Crown Beverages Limited, one of the leading soft drink bottler in the country.

A team of specialists from Volga-Dnepr started with the freight inspection in Munich to find the best loading solution , provide suggestions for cargo preparation and to minimise the time required for airport handling procedures on the day of departure. On the day of the flight, the machinery was loaded into the An-124-100 using special loading equipment and delivered to Entebbe International Airport.

“This project allowed us to showcase our expertise and experience in the provision of dedicated services for the energy and heavy machinery industries. The ideal location of our regional operational base in Leipzig, Germany, with available operations personnel and essential loading equipment, made it possible to save time while organising on-site visits to Munich for cargo inspection. Accessibility of the airplane at our local operational base in Germany made the costs for positioning the aircraft minimal and the charter flight attractive for our customer price-wise, “ commented Ekaterina Andreeva, Commercial Manager of Volga-Dnepr in the UK