Lightweight slings with Dyneema® save time and money in heavy lift operations
Squeezing maximum efficiency out of a massive gantry crane
LINDØ port of ODENSE (LPO) is a leader in handling and loading large components and equipment for the offshore and heavy industries. A key asset is its huge gantry crane – one of the biggest in northern Europe. But that is not its only benefit, because the park has also cut the time it takes to complete a lift by 45 minutes. How? Just by switching to lightweight Dynamica SafeLift slings made with Dyneema® SK78.
Upgrade with a focus on size and efficiency
Among other specialties, Lindø, near Odense in Denmark, is a Bladt Industries manufacturing location and storage depot for jackets –foundations used for offshore wind turbines. In addition, with both growing interest in wind power and the running down and decommissioning of North Sea oil and gas platforms, the port management expect demand for Lindø’s facilities to continue to grow.
As well as creating more space, the goal is to achieve a time and cost-efficiency leap forward that will give companies based there a significant competitive edge.
“In the case of jacket relocations, the weight reduction means that we save at least 45 minutes on each lifting operation.”
Peter Blazejewicz, Manager Lift & Transport Engineering at LPO
Lifting slings help determine speed of operation
Part of this competitive edge has involved upgrading the rigging used with one of the biggest and strongest gantry cranes in northern Europe. The gantry, or portal crane at Lindø can lift components, equipment and ships weighing up to 1,000 tonnes each. It is the kind of lifting gear you need when moving 63-meter wind turbine jacket foundations weighing up to 665 tonnes each.
Size, however, tells only part of the story when it comes to efficiency. Until 2016, LPO Transport Division used polyester slings with its heavy lifting gear. Polyester slings, however, have several disadvantages if your goal is maximum efficiency. The polyester slings used with the Lindø gantry crane, for example, had a diameter of 101 mm and tipped the scales at 186 kg. Modern alternatives can do the same thing at a fraction of the diameter and weight – which brings massive benefits in rigging time.
A same-performance lifting sling that weighs 186 kg in polyester weighs just 45 kg when made with Dyneema®.
Lifting slings with Dyneema® SK78: 75% lighter and significantly thinner
Knowing this, the LPO Transport Division decided to learn more about Dynamica SafeLift slings. These are made by Dynamica Ropes using Dyneema®, the world’s strongest fiber. Slings made with Dyneema® SK78 are up to seven times stronger than steel at the same weight. They support the highest lifting capabilities – beyond 4,500 tonnes – yet their much lower weight compared with alternatives supports faster operations. How much lower? Two equally strong lifting slings weigh 186 kgs in polyester and just 45 when made with Dyneema® SK78, a saving of 140 kg – or more than 75%.
To LPO, the potential benefits of switching to Dynamica SafeLift slings were striking. “We naturally examine both the theoretical properties and actual physical condition of new lifting gear before we use it – and we were very impressed by the properties offered by Dynamica Ropes’ lifting slings,” says Peter Blazejewicz, Manager Lift & Transport Engineering at LPO. Following in-depth discussions about the requirements and lifting gear involved, LPO decided to buy SafeLift slings. “This has turned out to be a great decision,” adds Blazejewicz.
How great? “In the particular case of numerous jacket relocations, the weight reduction meant that we saved at least 45 minutes on each lifting operation. Since each of these lifting operations involved our 1000-tonne gantry crane, a 103 m lift and a crew of five to seven, the cost saving was substantial,” says Blazejewicz.
“Two persons must be capable of handling the lifting sling […] and next to that the slings enabled them to reach all 4 lifting points in one go, without having to move the truck around."
Enes Hadziefendic, Technical Consultant at Dynamica
Lifting with Dyneema® is better for riggers
And LINDØ port of ODENSE has discovered another benefit of switching to Dynamica SafeLift slings with Dyneema® SK78: better conditions for the riggers who work there. “Rigging with polyester slings was physically demanding for the riggers,” says Blazejewicz. “The switch to SafeLift slings has made this task easier for them.”
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