Swiss heavy haulage specialist Friderici Spécial has bought its first ever TII Scheuerle SPMT modules. It bought four Power Hoss 260 models, each with six axle lines and payloads of up to 256 tonnes, to fulfil an order placed by Geneva Airport. It will use the SPMTs to replace two gantry cranes in use at the renewal of the airport’s runway.
Due to the critical nature of working on an airport runway Friderici Spécial wanted to familiarise itself with the new SPMT so it used the them for two initial jobs prior to being deployed at the airport.
The first was to transport two transformers weighing 100 and 147 tonnes respectively, a journey that involved travelling on public roads for a stretch.
The second was to transport a tunnel boring machine, weighing 88 tonnes and measuring 14 metres long and six metres wide, out of a flood discharge tunnel. The tunnel was too small to use other specialised transport equipment and the SPMTs even had to navigate a bottleneck in the tunnel entrance.
Once these jobs had been successfully completed Friderici Spécial was confident to use the SPMTs on the airport runway.
The runway is constantly being refurbished. Concrete slabs, measuring 15 by 8 metres and weighing 180 tonnes, which had been used to create the runway are being replaced piece by piece with new, prefabricated slabs. As Geneva Airport has only one runway, maintenance work always takes place, when planes aren’t flying.
Until now the airport operator has used two mobile gantry cranes for this task which alternately transported concrete slabs to and from the actual working area. However, the two lifting machines needed to be replaced due to age. Together TII Scheuerle and Friderici Spécial developed the concept of replacing the chassis´ of the gantry cranes with the SPMT PowerHoss – two of the module transporters per gantry crane onto which the supports of the gantry crane are bolted. The crane and load together weigh around 300 tonnes which is why two SPMT Power-Hoss 260 vehicles with a total of 512 tonnes payload were required.
TII Scheuerle also fitted the SPMTs with special connecting elements so that the cranes can be quickly removed from the runway using an airport towing tractor should an emergency arise.
The Geneva Airport contract is expected to last several decades. After this, and at times when work at the airport has been suspended, Friderci Spécial will use the PowerHoss SPMT vehicles for other projects in the energy, construction and industrial sectors.
“To be honest, I had no idea how a SPMT PowerHoss felt when driving,” said Stéphane Friderici, managing director of Friderici Spécial. “However, now I can say it's unbelievable how well the modular transporter can be controlled. It can be steered precisely and easily adapted to suit the load as well as the incline of the road.
“The manoeuvrability is almost unbelievable and the handling is easy. It is ideal for use in tunnels, galleries, halls and similar spaces where manoeuvring space availability is very limited.
“Even when under load and negotiating road inclinations, it can be excellently controlled with the radio remote control. There is always enough time to compensate for road gradients.
"Our search for a functional replacement for the gantry cranes chassis has shown that the PowerHoss SPMT is the most efficient solution for this task and the most cost-effective solution in terms of acquisition and operation."
