North Sea Handling, based in Norway, is a market-leading provider of cargo and passenger access equipment, as well as of energy efficiency solutions for the shipping, offshore and aquaculture industries. For eight new ships of a Dutch shipowner Spliethoff, the company was looking for an innovative winch solution for a side loader to make the handling of pallets and coils more efficient. The aim thereby was to transport the goods directly by a forklift into a side loader installed inside a large side door in the hull to bring the cargo to different deck levels inside the ship. A forklift inside the ship would distribute the goods on the different decks — without a container or a crane system. The new side loader system would also give the shipowner several improvements as compared to older systems, such as a better space utilisation for the cargo area, regeneration of energy, reduced emission when in harbour, faster and more accurate cargo handling, increase capacity in tons/ hour, shorter loading/ discharging time in harbour, as well as following a possible slower speed, when sailing, to reduce emissions at sea. The tight space conditions on these ships presented a major challenge. Liebherr's components product segment came up with an innovative solution.
At one of its production sites in Biberach an der Riss (Germany), Liebherr develops and manufactures components for drive technology. These include rope winches of the LWP 1632 series, which have been modified, so that the planetary plug-in gearbox is mounted on the opposite side of the motor. This allows the motor and the brake to be positioned separately and, in turn, to ensure optimum space utilisation. Such an arrangement also provides for easy servicing and increased accessibility to the brake. Liebherr stood out with this concept and impressed with its technical advice, comprehensive expertise and ability to understand and master complex challenges.
Each winch is characterised not only by its special design, but also by its load capacity. The load capacity is up to 30 tonnes (divided between two ropes of 15 tonnes each) and delivers a total rope pulling force of 361 kN (2x 180.5 kN*). The first winches are already scheduled for delivery next summer, marking the start of this pioneering project.
*The specification "2× 180.5 kN" refers to two coiled ropes, which feature a combined tensile force of 361 kN.
