A high capacity steel warehouse for multi-modal transport and logistics contractor, A V Dawson, has installed four overhead cranes, each of 30 tonnes capacity, from Street Crane Company. The cranes will play a crucial role in receiving and despatching steel coils for North East automotive and construction plant manufacturers and are expected to handle up to 290,000 tonnes of steel a year.
The four cranes are necessary to provide zoned stock management in a 36 metre wide single bay building that is 264 metres long. Each double box-beam girder crane spans an exceptional 35 metres and has a Street custom designed and built heavy duty wire rope VX hoist. Approach alarms, flashing beacons and an anti-collision system that will maintain a one bay separation distance between the cranes, all promote greater safety. Full length platforms on each crane ensure safe access for servicing.
Steel coil will be offloaded into storage from train trucks that can drive right through the building. Coils will be stored in designated areas and transferred from store to road vehicles as local manufacturers call off stock to meet their production needs. Street VX hoists were required because of this high frequency of product movements.
VX hoists are engineered to meet specific handling requirements. This is a robust heavy duty hoist design and in this application, mechanical components are rated M8, to take account of high intensity workload. A particular characteristic of the VX is its true vertical lift, so the hook follows a vertical path enabling product to be placed precisely while eliminating any sideways drag. The open frame design of the hoist provides easy access to major components for servicing. An external brake operating on the first gearbox shaft, away from the drive motor, remains cooler in use and is also more easily inspected and serviced.
The facility has sustainability features to reduce long term energy costs, give greater energy security and provide an internal environment that protects the product from condensation. A constant temperature and humidity will be provided in the building with heating from a deep-bore ground source and power from solar arrays on one side of the roof reducing dependence on the grid. Rainwater will be harvested from the roof and fed into the drainage network via a balance pool to meet the sustainable urban drainage (SUDS) requirements.
Managing director, Gary Dawson, noted, “We opted for Street equipment because of good performance from their cranes and hoists elsewhere in the business. We were reassured in this view by the fact that many of our suppliers and customers, notably TATA, also use Street and it is also good to deal with a family owned British company.”
In fact, nearby to A V Dawson, TATA in Redcar recently installed four special cranes from Street to improve order turnaround as part of the steel depot refit. Here an innovative crane configuration has been adopted. Four cranes have been provided of double bridge design, where two linked beams span the 20 metre bays and on these is fitted a 27 metre crane bridge, bearing twin six tonne hoists. This permits zoned north/south and east/west material flow allowing steel to be brought into the processing bay, with transfer through the shot blast and painting processes before the finished steel is shipped out to customers.
Street Crane’s sales director, Chris Lindley-Smith, explained, “Though the cranes at A V Dawson and TATA differ in that they are custom designed and optimised for each application, they do share the common but vital features of importance to both customers – those of durability and reliability for high frequency of use.”
Innovation and customer service are strong points for Street Crane. These were recognised recently during a factory visit by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Right Honourable George Osborne. Praising the company to a group of his local party supporters, George Osborne said, “The method behind its success is investment in product development and a ‘can do’ attitude. Street Crane has gone from strength to strength in tandem with our economy over the last few years, something we should all be proud of.”
A time lapse video showing stocking of the AV Dawson facility, installation of cranes at TATA steel and George Osborne’s visit to Street Crane can all be viewed on Street Crane’s YouTube channel www.youtube.com/streetcranechannel
More information
Chris Lindley-Smith, Tel. +44 (0)1298 812456 Fax. +44 (0)1298 814 945
E-mail: admin@streetcrane.co.uk
Web: www.streetcrane.co.uk
Street Crane Company, Chapel-en-le-Frith, High Peak, SK23 0PH
