Largest gantry crane in the Nordic countries delivered to Meyer Turku
The largest gantry crane in the Nordic countries was delivered on 19 June to Meyer Turku shipyard by Finnish Konecranes. Goliath crane will be used to build increasingly large cruise ships at Meyer Turku shipyard with an even higher degree of industrialization, says the shipyard's press release.
“Normally we are the ones delivering large high tech products to our customers, but this time we are the customer. The new crane is an essential part of our 200m€ ramp-up investment program, as it will triple our daily lifting capacity. In the future we are able to build larger grand blocks, which in turn increases our possibilities to industrialize our production further. And finally this gantry crane project is a good example of Finnish collaboration, since the shipyard has built the 2500t crane beam as a subcontractor to KoneCranes. We are very happy to have the new crane help us fulfil the promises we have made in our order book”, CEO of Meyer Turku Jan Meyer states.
The new 1200 ton crane is a showcase of two Finnish international companies working together. Konecranes was responsible for the design, precision drive components, electrical installation and automation system and structural components. The high volume and quality of Meyer Turku steel manufacturing was used to build the main girder and also to weld it in place.
“Our cooperation with Meyer Turku has been one of our most exciting projects. We actually delivered a Goliath crane here already in 1976 and I am proud to see that the recently made modernization has extended its lifetime. But I am also very proud of the new high-tech gantry crane we have delivered now. It is equipped with the latest technology and has several features built in to optimize the use of the crane. I wish Meyer Turku all the best and am sure that our cranes will help you to build more and even bigger ships in the future”, says Panu Routila, Konecranes President and CEO.
Even with the delivery of the new goliath crane, the old crane will continue in operation. In the future the old crane will see dedicated service in turning around 100 ton blocks, an important job in building the hulls for cruise ships.
The new crane is only the most visible part of Meyer Turku’s 200 million euro investment program, including for example new plate cutting line, a new panel line and a number of important IT investments.
“We are really rebuilding the yard into a modern, data driven ship assembly factory with these investments. But new machinery is not enough, we are constantly both recruiting new shipbuilders and training our old teams to get out as much as possible from these new facilities”, Jan Meyer concludes.
Goliath Crane in numbers: Total hoisting capacity: 1200tn; Total height: 120m; Rail span: 154m; Max lifting height: 90m; Speed of gantry crane: 30 m/min; Length of gantry crane track: 750 m.
