Pre-assembled energy chain ensures energy and data transmission in crane construction

• What was needed: Safe and smart energy chain system that can withstand the harsh environment
• Requirements: Long travel distance, stable for a cable weight of 50kg, suitable for weather conditions
• Product: readychain ready-made energy chain
• Industry: Cranes
• Success for the customer: The harnessed readychain system saved a lot of time during assembly.

About ship-to-shore cranes:
Ship-to-shore cranes can be found at harbours. Their task is to transport containers from ship to shore or from shore to ship. Cranes with a high loading capacity are required to unload large container ships economically. The travelling length of ship-to-shore cranes is up to 500 metres. In many cases, the weight of such cranes is over 2,000 tonnes.

Due to the long travel distances in crane construction, the requirements for operational safety are particularly high. The challenge is to avoid expensive downtimes and thus downtime.
In addition, long travel lengths also mean that the cables within them are very heavy. For this reason, the energy chain must be able to support this weight accordingly. It must also be ensured that no losses occur in data and energy transmission during this travel distance.
For example, the trolley travelled by ship-to-shore cranes moves at a speed of 250m/min.

At the harbours, the cranes are exposed to the weather, which is why the energy chains and cables must be resistant to and withstand harsh environmental conditions.

The system was delivered to the construction site completely pre-assembled. This saves the customer a lot of time during installation and largely eliminates installation errors. The energy chain systems installed in a shaft were equipped with stainless steel guide channels and fitted with a drive-over cover system to protect them from the weather and sunlight.
 
A roller energy chain was used for the high-speed trolley travel for energy and data transmission. It was not necessary to use additional drives or a control system for the chain. Furthermore, the weight is lower than with a conventional system. The crane manufacturer can therefore save drive power for the trolley and system weight. A chainflex fibre optic cable was used for data transmission, which is the most secure type of data transmission (without EMC interference) and therefore avoids the risk of possible data loss.