BADT Levage supports pharmaceutical production expansion with a 3.2-ton overhead crane

OVERVIEW AND CHALLENGE

Established in 1994 and based in Grand-Quevilly, BADT Levage specializes in the design, construction and installation of overhead cranes. A member of the Verlinde after-sales service network and Europont, the company provides lifting and handling solutions throughout Normandy.

A customer specializing in pharmaceutical packaging had been using a crane runway with a 2-ton suspension crane to install moulds on injection presses. To increase production, the customer planned to install three new presses using larger and heavier moulds weighing 2.8 tons. However, the customer wanted to retain the existing crane runway.

The project required the crane runway to be divided into two sections and a new 3.2-ton overhead crane to be installed on the second section. The framework had to be adapted to support the increased capacity without obstructing the carts used to deliver moulds to the foot of the presses. The larger dimensions of the new presses and moulds also created a height constraint beneath the hook.

“We manufacture around twenty overhead cranes a year. Our approach is that we cover the whole production chain, first taking the measurements and finally installing the equipment at the customer’s site.”

Xavier Laurence, CEO of BADT Levage

SOLUTION

BADT Levage carried out a design calculation for the framework supporting the new 3.2-ton overhead crane. The study showed that the framework needed to be reinforced and raised. These modifications were completed without interfering with the movement of the carts that deliver the moulds to the presses.

The existing crane remained in place on the first section of the runway. It is equipped with a Verlinde Eurochain VR12 electric chain hoist, previously installed by BADT Levage and providing complete satisfaction to the customer.

The new 3.2-ton overhead crane serves the three new presses and includes two overhangs, each 1.25 metres long, to extend the hoist coverage area. The crane picks up the moulds from the foot of the presses and positions them inside the presses. To meet the restricted hook-height requirement, BADT Levage selected a compact Verlinde Eurobloc VT electric wire rope hoist. The hook height provided by the hoist was a critical factor when the customer selected the new press models.

The complete installation was commissioned in only three weeks. Three BADT Levage technicians worked full-time on the project, using the company’s recent high-performance equipment to complete the installation rapidly.