September 26 - Scottish wind turbine tower manufacturer CS Wind has taken delivery of two brand new heavy-duty reachstackers manufactured by Germany-headquartered Containerhandling Equipment & Solutions (CES).
CES and its UK distributor, Shad Group, presented the VRS-K, which boasts a lifting capacity of 150 tonnes, to CS Wind at its newly developed offshore wind turbine tower manufacturing plant in Campbeltown, Scotland.
CS Wind is utilising the pair of reachstackers for handling wind tower components. The new equipment was demonstrated with the lift and move of a 111-tonne wind tower section across the facility (pictured below).
The new VRS-K heavy-duty reachstacker joins CES's VRS-J and VRS-L models, which offer 120-tonne and 250-tonne lifting capacities respectively.
Nicolas Huthloff, managing director of CES Group, said the new reachstacker is an industry first, not just due to its high lifting capacity but also its variable telescopic wheelbase, which allows for up to seven different wheelbases and capacities in one machine.
"The sliding, extending chassis keeps ground pressure very low," added Peter Doggett, managing director of Shad Group. "This is a major investment on the part of CS Wind and the operations here will not work without these machines… The reachstackers have been designed from the ground up and CS Wind is the first customer in the world."
Huthloff added: "We do see a growing demand in heavy-duty reachstackers. Currently you must use self-propelled modular transporters (SPMT) and crawler cranes to lift and move weights more than 130 tonnes. Investment is far higher for two crawler cranes and SPMTs, in comparison to two reachstackers, so the customer can save a lot of costs."
Huthloff has also identified the oil and gas and steel industries as target markets for the VRS reachstacker range.
Doggett also said that the reachstackers are more reliable and cheaper to maintain than using a combination of crawler cranes and SPMTs.
According to Dong Energy, which made a multi-million dollar investment in CS Wind's new offshore tower manufacturing facility, the new location will be able to produce at least 50 towers a year for the UK's burgeoning wind energy industry.
CES presents the reachstackers to CS Wind.
