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cranes

Ports predicted to drive autonomous crane market past $6 billion by 2030

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Ports are receiving significant investment to both optimize and automate daily operations.

According to global technology intelligence firm ABI Research, revenues for autonomous cranes in ports will surpass $6 billion globally by 2030, with Asia-Pacific (APAC) taking up over half of the market.

Ryan Wiggin, senior analyst at ABI Research, says: “The adoption of advanced technologies in port operations continues to grow in all regions but does vary based on infrastructure maturity and union resistance. [Read more…] about Ports predicted to drive autonomous crane market past $6 billion by 2030

DFI’s Bridge Crane solution provides one-off customization and worry-free management

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Industrial computing specialist DFI has unveiled its Bridge Crane solution, which it says provides one-off customization and worry-free management

An overhead crane, commonly called a bridge crane, is a type of crane found in industrial environments. An overhead crane consists of parallel runways with a traveling bridge spanning the gap.

A hoist, the lifting component of the crane, travels along the bridge. Every year in the modern ports of the world, tens of thousands of containers and bulk goods come in and out through bridge cranes.

Unlike mobile or construction cranes, overhead cranes are typically used for either manufacturing or maintenance applications, where efficiency or downtime are critical factors. [Read more…] about DFI’s Bridge Crane solution provides one-off customization and worry-free management

KB Components develops its logistics with automation specialist Swisslog

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KB Components, one of Scandinavia’s leading manufacturers of plastic components, has chosen Swisslog as its partner for automation and logistics development.

The two companies started collaborating back in 1986 with the installation of automated pallet cranes and now, more than 30 years later, they have chosen Swisslog as their partner again for the replacement of this market leading technology.

Kent Brickling, logistics manager at KB Components, says: “Over the years, we have had a great cooperation with Swisslog for the service and system support of our pallet cranes at our facility in Örkelljunga, Sweden. [Read more…] about KB Components develops its logistics with automation specialist Swisslog

Swisslog wins major order from Ikea in Malaysia

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Swisslog, a warehouse automation company, has received a major order from Ikea Supply in Malaysia.

The contract is valued at approximately €43 million.

The project comprises of 215,000 pallet locations of clad-rack, 21 warehouse pallet stacker cranes Vectura, the pallet conveyor system ProMove, the electric Monorail System and the core of the system, the Swisslog software SynQ.

[Read more…] about Swisslog wins major order from Ikea in Malaysia

Swisslog wins two large orders in Scandinavia and Southeast Asia

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Swisslog has been commissioned to carry out the comprehensive automation of the Coop warehouse in Langhus.

The delivery includes a high-bay pallet warehouse with six Vectura stacker cranes and a conveyor system, which are controlled by the intelligent Swisslog software SynQ.

 The new distribution centre will be in full operation at the beginning of 2021.

[Read more…] about Swisslog wins two large orders in Scandinavia and Southeast Asia

TMEIC to supply Virginia port with world’s largest automated cranes system in deal worth $670 million

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port of virginia
Port of Virgina. Picture courtesy PortStrategy.com

Toshiba Mitsubishi-Electric Industrial Systems Corporation has been selected to provide industrial drive and automation solutions for The Port of Virginia’s historic expansion project, totaling 86 Konecranes Automated-Stacking Cranes (ASC) at the Norfolk International Terminal (NIT) and Virginia International Gateway (VIG) facilities.

This is the largest ASC order TMEIC has received to date and the largest single ASC order ever placed by a port.

“TMEIC has been a longtime, proven partner with Konecranes and The Port of Virginia, including the construction of VIG and the original ASC implementation there in 2007,” TMEIC president and CEO Dale Guidry said.  [Read more…] about TMEIC to supply Virginia port with world’s largest automated cranes system in deal worth $670 million

Construction: Interference could undermine development of crane technology

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crane collapse

Keith Armstrong, worldwide electromagnetic compatibility specialist at EMC Standards, looks at problems with electrical interference and how construction managers can minimise their risk

Cranes are synonymous with the idea of development. Typically used to construct buildings, cranes aid the economic and social development of a town or city. However, cranes suffer from a persistent problem that is indicative of a significant threat to the future of technology: interference.

In the early days of the UK Department of Trade and Industry’s EMC Awareness Campaign, there was an infamous incident where a man was crushed to death by a crane. In this case, electrical interference caused the crane to prematurely release its load while the man was operating it with his radio-control pendant. Unfortunately, this tragedy is not an isolated incident.

There was another incident with a company that claimed to have made the controls and drives for the first large scale hovercraft-testing tank in the late 1960s. It was, in effect, a sophisticated travelling overhead crane, which ran the length of a gantry along overhead rails and towed a hovercraft shape along a large pool of water in an even larger building. In those days, they used resistor-transistor logic, which ran on a 40 V rail to provide noise immunity.

[Read more…] about Construction: Interference could undermine development of crane technology