Cemex takes world’s first electrically powered handler
Published by Angharad Lock,
Digital Assistant Editor
Dry Bulk,
Cemex UK have recently taken delivery of the world’s first electrically powered Terex Fuchs SHL885 material handler, supplied by Blue Fuchs.
Representing a total investment of £1.5 million, the new 95 t material handler is mounted on rails on a jetty at Cemex’s Dagenham Wharf operation, on the river Thames, where it is used to unload ships delivering limestone from Raynes Quarry, in North Wales.
Capable of travelling along virtually the entire length of the jetty, the machine’s 3 m3 capacity Arden grab can access all areas of the ships to handle the projected 250 000 t of material arriving each year.
The limestone is deposited into a 50 t capacity dump/feed hopper and transported, via three conveyors totalling 320 m in length, to the site’s recently constructed ready-mixed concrete batching plant.
Featuring a cranked boom that offers 23.6 m of reach, the Fuchs SHL885 material handler utilizes Rexroth hydraulics powered by an electric motor that generates 250 kW at 1500 rev/min.
The second motor (22kW) supplies pilot pressure for machine operation while the third (7.5kW) powers the air-conditioning system. All electric current is delivered via a double cable roll, which is connected to a switchboard located on the machine’s undercarriage.
The SHL885 incorporates a hydraulically height-adjustable cab giving a maximum eye level of 8.8 m from the quay. The cab is also horizontally adjustable by up to 2.2 m and features panoramic windows for optimum all-round vision.
Site Manager Steve Batty said: “While Blue Fuchs offered us a great deal, the decision certainly wasn’t made purely on price. We were very impressed with the machine and we have seen how popular Fuchs equipment is becoming up and down the river.”
Pat James, key account manager at Blue Fuchs, said: “We are delighted that Cemex choose Fuchs. This is a highly customised machine that required all parties – ourselves, Terex Fuchs and CEMEX, as well as Quality Freight Services who delivered the machine – to work together very closely. This process has clearly demonstrated how Fuchs equipment can be adapted to perfectly suit a customer’s requirements.”
Read the article online at: https://www.drybulkmagazine.com/material-handling/07062017/cemex-takes-worlds-first-electrically-powered-handler/
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