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Bosch Rexroth drives Super Crane to New Heights

Product News Monday, December 17, 2012: Hytec Group of Companies

Bosch Rexroth Belgium acted as development partner and systems consultant in an ambitious 25 million euro project that saw the construction of one of the world’s biggest ring-lifting cranes, ideal for heavy lifting applications at refineries, in the petrochemicals sector, when installing oil drilling rigs, and during power station construction. As lead contractor, Bosch Rexroth was also responsible for project management, commissioning, testing and acceptance, as well as diagnosis and condition monitoring.

Built by a Belgian transporting and heavy load specialist, Big Benny, as the SGC-120-model crane is called, is almost twice as tall as its namesake, the famous London landmark. A pioneering technical innovation, the 5 200-ton SGC-120 crane is able to position loads with millimetre precision in spite of its gigantic dimensions, thanks to six compact, secondary-controlled winches with an operating speed of 22.4 metres per second that can be positioned uniformly and precisely, and operated synchronously.

The enormous slewing gear of the SGC-120 is powered by 64 A2FM Bosch Rexroth hydraulic motors, and takes an entire hour to complete one revolution. At the same time, the hydraulic motors are synchronised via a secondary controlled drive system, incorporating HNC100-SEK and MAC-8 control electronics.

The crane features a 3 200 ton lifting capacity and three boom lengths, ranging between 90 and 120 metres. The concept includes a hook that, with its deadweight of over 100 tons, weighs as much as a fully loaded Boeing 757.

Six containerised power units, each with two 280-kilowatt diesel engines and Bosch Rexroth A4VSO axial piston pumps, supply the necessary hydraulic power. The Bosch Rexroth IndraLogic PLC handles all the control and monitoring functions.

Setting new standards in lifting super heavyweight loads, the ring design, with an outside diameter of 40 metres, makes for stable and reliable operating parameters, while requiring only minimal preparation of the subsoil.

The SGC-120 is of a modular design to enable transport in 160, stackable, 40-foot containers. After four weeks of on-site assembly, those containers are filled with locally sourced material to serve as a 3 600-ton counterweight.