Winches offer greater pulling power

Profi Puller winches from the J D Neuhaus range now offer pulling power of up to 3500kg (previous limit was 3000kg). Their air operated winches fitted with 6kW rated motors not only have higher pulling power, but also higher rope speeds for faster rope pay-out and recovery times.

These products are also Ex rated, suitable for safe operation within hazardous areas. They are particularly suited to oil and gas production plants, both offshore and land based, as well as chemical installations and a wide range of other industrial operations where potentially explosive atmospheres may occur.

Refer to picture above: The latest Profi Puller 3000-6 high performance winch from J D Neuhaus Ltd, with a pulling capacity of 3500kg and shown fitted with wire rope and drum guard.

A durable steel structure is combined with a long drum to provide good rope capacity with four layer spooling, and a drum/rope diameter ratio which ensures optimum rope life operation. An integrated planetary gearbox also utilises exhaust air cooling for 100% duty cycles with minimum maintenance and maximum reliability. The winches are easy to install and have a low operating noise level. A winch mounted control lever is provided as standard for precise operation and variable speed control. Optional twin button or lever pendant controllers can also be supplied for remote operation.

Emergency stop and overload protection are incorporated as standard, with other optional features including pressure roller, rope drum grooving, slack rope detector, welded pulling frame and drum guard (fitted as standard to CE winch version). A split drum arrangement can also be provided which facilitates pulling/spooling-off operations to take place on adjacent sides of the drum at the same time.

Within the full range of JDN lifter/puller winches, the large capacity puller winches are supplemented by lightweight aluminium framed Profi lifters with capacities of 500 or 800kg. Rugged, steel framed products can also be supplied for either lifting or pulling operations with capacities from 1200 to 2000kg and motor ratings from 2.2 to 5.5kW. All products of 1200kg capacity or more can also be supplied with offshore painting (yellow) as an option. Some products can also be equipped with an emergency lowering feature, suitable for operation in accident/emergency evacuation situations.

All products are designed to operate at 6 bar air pressure and can be used with varying rope diameters 8-12mm or 5/16"-1/2" in size.

The Ex ratings for the standard products are Ex II 2 GD IIB T4(X) / II 3 GD IIB T4 (X). This rating can be increased where increased spark protection has been specified to Ex II 2 GD IIB T4 (X).

Air operated monorail hoists from
J D Neuhaus feature upgraded air motors

Some air operated monorail hoists from J D Neuhaus feature upgraded air motors and all models can be customised with additional accessories to suit specific industry challenges. Operating off a pneumatic air pressure of 85psi (6 bar), the hoists avoid the potential hazards and dangers associated with electrically powered equipment when operating within areas with high humidity or potentially explosive dusts or gases. With carrying capacities ranging from 10 to 115 tonnes, these hoists are suitable for a wide range of both general and specialised engineering applications including outdoor installations.

Where confined or restricted headroom conditions are involved then ultra-low monorail hoists are also available for loads from 4 - 100 tonnes. A high performance patented vane motor (as now fitted to these hoists up to 12 tonnes capacity) combines self-lube operation with sturdy design features and a reduced number of component parts. This simplifies setting and assembly procedures while providing long, trouble-free performance with low maintenance requirements.
Refer to picture above: J D Neuhaus EH50 monorail hoist (50 tonnes lifting capacity), with pendant mounted electronic hook load indicator shown in inset view.

All these hoist products can also be supplied suitable for use on curved beam supports, making them particularly suitable for transfers between production lines. Optional electronic indicators of the hook loading, in addition, can be provided as an attachment to the pendant controllers. A further recent introduction includes perforated chain storage boxes that prevent the retention of water or other environmental site debris. This option is particularly suited to land rig operations.

JDN air hoists are also classified for explosion protection when operating within hazardous area conditions as can be encountered within chemical, mining, tunnelling, foundries and offshore industries etc. Standard hoists are marked Ex II 2 GD 11A T4/Ex II 3 GD 11B T4, with increased spark protection provided as an option up to explosion level 11C.

As well as being insensitive to humidity, dust and temperatures from -20°C up to +70°C, these compact hoists incorporate instant starting with a fail-safe disc brake for safe load-holding in the event of interruption to the air power supply. Anti-climb and anti-drop devices are also included, with pendant controllers and emergency shut-off valves. Overload protection, rack and pinion drive, two-speed trolley travel control and a filter silencer can also be provided as optional accessories.

For further information, e-mail: info@jdneuhaus.co.uk or view website: www.jdneuhaus.co.uk    Refer to next page

Electric-operated tug provides a cool solution at George Barker & Co

By investing in a compact, electric-operated pedestrian tug to transfer trolleys of metal parts from manufacturing to assembly, refrigeration equipment supplier George Barker & Co. Ltd has cut materials handling time by 75 per cent and expects payback in eight months.

"A recent Work Study has demonstrated that by investing in a new electric-operated tug, the plant has cut the time it takes to transfer materials from the manufacturing floor to the assembly plant by 75 per cent," says Paul Mellor, Planning & Materials Manager at George Barker & Co. (Leeds) Ltd. "This equates to a saving of between 30 and 40 hours per week, which means the tug will have paid for itself within six to eight months."

Established in 1928, George Barker & Co. (Leeds) Ltd is part of Epta, a leading multinational group that supplies high quality equipment and services for commercial refrigeration. Based in Bradford, George Barker & Co designs, manufactures and installs a range of advanced cooling solutions for the major retail supermarkets chains, including Morrisons and Marks & Spencer. The company's solutions include tiered displays and cabinets for chilled food, plug-in refrigeration units, speciality displays for hot foods, glass cabinets for frozen foods and refrigeration power packs.

The manufacturing and assembly plant in West Yorkshire has a capacity of 20,000 square metres and employs around 400 staff. The company has a strong commitment towards health, safety and the environment and is an active member of the British Health & Safety Council, the British Refrigeration Association and the Engineering Employers' Federation.

The cabinets and displays manufactured at the plant consist mainly of metal and glass and so the manufacturing process reflects this. There is a mix of laser cutting machines, CNC bending machines, powder coating equipment and a foam injection plant.

Space is at a premium and so the plant's manufacturing and assembly processes are spread across three levels, which presents some unique materials handling challenges for the company. As Paul Mellor continues: "Each day we have to transfer manufactured components across to an elevator, where the parts are then lifted to the assembly plant above. There's only one lift and there are space constraints in the lift itself and in the aisles between machines. The process was also labour-intensive and essentially involved moving metal stillages and containers of metal parts that weigh between 200kg and 450kg to the lift."

Prior to investing in the electric-operated tug, one employee would manually drag containers of metal parts to the lift using mechanical wheels, a ride-on truck, which were quite bulky and had weight restrictions. As space in the lift itself was restricted, physically manoeuvring the truck or wheels was difficult and time consuming.

After looking through MasterMover's website for a solution to the company's materials handling problem, Paul Mellor invited MasterMover to recommend a suitable system.

MasterMover recommended its MasterTug MT5-400 machine. The compact size and manoeuvrability of the machine were particularly appealing to Mellor, since space was at a premium. The MT5 can push, pull and steer wheeled and semi-wheeled loads up to 4 tonnes in weight. The machine's patented technology moves the weight of the load on to the drive wheel through a coupling system, ensuring maximum traction from a lightweight, easy-to-manoeuvre machine. Simple to operate and with a range of integrated safety features, the machine is ideal for use in busy manufacturing and assembly environments, particularly when space is restricted.

"The key for me was the compactness of the MT5, as well as its weight capacity and safety features," adds Mellor. "We bought one machine, but we expect to invest in another similar unit shortly for use in other areas of the plant."

According to Mellor, also key to the improved productivity and efficiency figures is a new design of trolley that holds six containers. In parallel with the introduction of the MT5, the company designed some purpose-built trolleys for carrying the containers of metal parts to the assembly plant. Rather than carrying one container at a time, these trolleys, which cannot be moved manually because of their increased load, are now transferred six containers at a time to the lift using the MT5. The trolleys have to be quite large in order to carry the six containers and so a compact handling system was critical to the improved process.

"The MT5 is certainly performing well and meeting our expectations. Five employees use the unit on a daily basis and everyone has been very enthusiastic and positive about using the new tug. Training was also very fast and straightforward and the staff couldn't wait to start using it," explains Mellor.

As well as benefits to production and assembly, Mellor says there are other advantages in using the MT5, including improved safety of employees. "With the amount of traffic reduced, accidents are fewer. The MT5 has also removed a lot of strain and manual effort in moving loads around the factory. It has also eliminated any risk of litigation or compensation claims from the workforce due to manual handling injuries."

The Work Study, which was undertaken in December 2008, showed that prior to using the MT5, loads were being moved from manufacturing to the assembly plant (via the lift) an average of 20 to 25 times per day. With the MT5, this figure has been reduced to between five and eight times per day. As Mellor concludes: "This is just the tip of the iceberg though. Potentially, we are looking at using the MT5 in other areas of the plant, including the press shop, where we currently handle large metal panels manually."

For further information on MasterMover's range of materials handling solutions or to arrange a free demonstration, email: info@mastermover.com   Refer to page 64