Ainscough Crane Hire was selected to provide four heavy-duty cranes to CEVA Showfreight in a complex operation to lift a 1,350 sq metre roof structure at the Farnborough International Airshow.
The operation created a temporary steel structure for Italian global aerospace company, Finmeccanica.
Commenting on the project, Ian Chapman, Sales Manager at Ainscough Crane Hire said: “The Farnborough roof lift was one of the most complex operations we undertook this year. As we were operating in a live airfield, we were restricted to the size of the cranes we could use and the height we could lift at.
“As the steel roof was also very complex, the cranes needed to be carefully positioned to spread the 45 tonne load. With a flex tolerance of only +/- 50cms, it was imperative that each crane lifted at the same speed to avoid damage.”
The project was co-ordinated by CEVA Showfreight. Ray Myles, Compliance Manager at CEVA Showfreight, said: “We checked our calculations for the lift and build for about three weeks before implementation. It is imperative to get the cranes lifting in sync for projects like this and we had a number of checks during the lifting process to ensure that this happened. Each winch motor was set the same and each crane was reeved identically.
“We monitored and recorded the lift height at half metre increments to make sure that the 50cm tolerance was maintained from floor level. By using the on-board computers on each crane and conducting cross checks by simply measuring the length of chains that were attached to the roof as it rose, our stringent approach ensured that roof structure stayed well within the 50cm tolerance window.”
To further protect the roof during the lift, it was fitted with a canvas cover that was then filled with air to form a dome effect. This helped to deflect the wind and stopped any rain collecting that could have added additional lifting weight to the cranes and cause an overload situation.
Once the roof was nine metres in the air, 18 eight metre supports were placed underneath it. The roof was then lowered one metre and bolted to the supports. The lift was completed in one day with only 60 minutes for the actual lifting operation, which was handled by a team of 10.
The operation took place in advance of Farnborough International Airshow, which opens to the trade on 9 July, and the public on 14 July 2012. Visitors will be able to get up close to an unrivalled gathering of aircraft and aviation technology as well as enjoying five hours of live aerobatics and flying demonstrations.
