German crane manufacturer Vetter Krantechnik has delivered its biggest slewing jib crane to the TAIF Oil Company refinery in Nizhnekamsk, Russia, for container handling.

The crane has a foundation measuring 2.5m by 6.8m by 6.8m, and is fastened with M36 anchoring bars with a depth of 2.6m. The pipe diameter is 2.6m with a wall thickness of 25mm, and the overall height of the crane is 14m.

The double jib arm of the crane comprises welded box-type girders with a jib arm length of 12m. At the tip of the jib arm, says Vetter, the crane has a capacity of 40t, enabling it to load any conventional container.

It offers infinite slewing motion through 360°, using several drive motors which also power the driving, lifting, and lowering motions of the lifting gear, which features a travel of 10m on the jib arm. All motions of the crane, including container lifting, are controlled by one operator via remote control, and local crane operators have been trained by Vetter.

Due to the location of the oil refinery, and local temperatures ranging from -40° to 40° Celsius from winter to summer, special steels with good resistance to cold were used, and all moving parts were fitted with protection against extreme conditions.

Sensitive components were also fitted with a range of protection systems, such as heating cartridges in the oil bath of the gears to ensure the required oil viscosity, and all motors were fitted with temperature sensors to protect failure through overheating.

At the oil refinery, the crane can handle around 15–30 containers a day. The crane represents a new type of container handling, says Vetter, which is suited to operations where a relatively small number of containers are handled every day. Due to the limited infrastructure required for such a crane, it can provide a better cost-benefit ratio, adds the company.

Vetter supplies super-sized slewing jib to Russian oil works