Lifting specialists RHC Lifting Limited have recently designed, manufactured, installed, and commissioned four 30m span overhead double gantry cranes in a new building for The Bristol Port Company. These cranes were RHC Lifting largest and heaviest cranes to date.
Located within the newly built C Shed, two of the cranes have a 7.5t safe working load, with the two larger cranes for lifting components having a 35t capacity.
All four cranes have a 12m height of lift and were built using SWF Krantechnik’s crane components with inverter-controlled hoisting and travel for smooth and precise control. The cranes were supplied with sway control technology to minimise load-sway, maximise movement speeds, and higher load positioning for accuracy and increased safety. Lights and sounders were fitted to warn operators of any overload events. Four sets of LED lights were installed on the underside of each crane’s beam to improve the light conditions underneath the crane.
All cranes were fitted with Autec joystick radio remote control systems, the AJC transmitters are colour- coded to match the corresponding crane and are fitted with proportional joysticks for accurate speed selection.
Due to the size of the 35t box beam cranes the manufacturing was outsourced to BVS Cranes in Turkey, who manufactured the 30×1.1×1.2m crane girders complete with access walkways, these beams were then shipped 4,500km across Europe.
As a solution provider, RHC Lifting also designed and installed the crane rail along the 160m gantry. This process started with design cooperation with the steel structure manufacturer, who predrilled the gantry beams according to RHC Lifting’s design to reduce site work. RHC Lifting then installed 320m of A65 crane rail and fitted and torqued 1,100 gantry rail clips. Further work included aligning the rails to BS ISO 12488-1:2012 and welding the rail joints.
The two 7.5t cranes were installed using a 70t mobile crane positioned inside the building, with RHC Lifting’s Appointed Person, Lift Supervisor and Slinger & Signallers working together to lift the crane safely onto the rails. Due to the size of the 35t cranes which were considerably larger and heavier, the lift required a 350t mobile crane which was positioned outside the building. The mobile crane’s hook block was then lowered through a section of the roof which was left out specifically for the crane installation.
Both 35t cranes were installed over a two-day period. The cranes were installed in three lifts with the first beam with the walkway and the end carriages weighing 16t, then lowering the box beam with festoon onto the end carriages at 11t per beam, before lifting on the hoist unit at 2.7t.
Also included in the project was the installation of a 160m 3M 8mm horizontal lifeline down the full length of the crane level walkway and two KATT Safety ladder systems with intermediate rest platforms. These combine to ensure the safety of engineers accessing the cranes for LOLER inspections and maintenance visits.
Andrew Cayzer, RHC Lifting’s Director, who was the Project Lead for this job, said “This was a fantastic job to be involved with, it was impressive to see the four cranes running at the end of the project and the teamwork of all RHC Lifting’s employees working together to deliver one our most outstanding projects. With RHC Lifting being an independent company we were able to select the most suitable subcontractors to deliver this project to match the customer needs.”
RHC Lifting load tested the cranes and gantry before handing over the cranes to Bristol Port. Now the cranes are fully operational, RHC Lifting will provide after-sales care including, operator training, servicing, and statutory inspections, as well as providing 24/7 breakdown cover for the two-year warranty period, as offered to all of RHC Lifting’s customers.
Bristol Port’s Development Engineer, David Hopton, stated “RHC Lifting was selected due to their ability to deliver a complete package and high-quality cranes. Throughout the project, RHC Lifting maintained good communication between all parties and other contractors to ensure the installation was completed in a stress free, safe and timely manner. We are extremely satisfied with RHC Lifting and the solution they provided.”
