Goldhofer AG

CABLE DRUM TRANSPORTATION with PURE EFFICIENCY

Awarded for

Promoting the Energy Transition with innovative logistics solutions

Company

Goldhofer is a globally operating company headquartered in Memmingen, Germany, which continues to strengthen its leading position as a manufacturer of heavy and specialized transport vehicles. The Group combines a high and consistent standard of quality for its transport solutions with maximum proximity to customers. With its growing, tightly knit global sales, service and production network, the company guarantees the local availability of new vehicles, vehicle parts and services at all times. Further added value is provided in the form of software tools for support with axle-load, stability and bend analysis. Thanks to innovative sensor technology and an innovative smart »LINK« telemetry system, extensive and secure data analysis is also available via remote access. At Goldhofer, a policy of close cooperation with customers is the key to products and services guaranteed to master every logistical challenge.

HOW THE INNOVATION WAS INVENTED

The cable drums currently used for extending the electricity transportation grid are three to five meters long and over four meters in diameter and weigh between 30 and 50 tons. They allow for cable lengths of about 1 km. For new projects such as the German South Link and South-East Link, cable drums with a length of approx. eight to twelve meters and weighing up to 100 t need to be transported. They are the key to cable lengths of up to two kilometers. Unreeling and pulling in the cables is a particular challenge, as this task can rarely be performed as part of the actual transport in a single operation using existing solutions. This means significantly higher costs for transportation and the unreeling equipment plus the relevant permits.

In cooperation with Energieanlagen Ramonat GmbH, Goldhofer has therefore developed a broad portfolio of solutions for transporting cable drums of different weights and sizes. “We have collaborated with Ramonat, who have so much experience of the market, to develop a system that not only consistently meets the needs of our customers with regard to transportation but also takes into account the special challenges of the unreeling process,” says Steinhauser. This makes it possible to act as sole provider on the market for all projects, with an enormous increase in efficiency.

Benefit

The cable drum is transported on a special vessel deck in a Goldhofer heavy-duty (4+6) or (5+7) module combination. The solution developed has two particular advantages: Easily mounted hydraulic support legs allow the bridge to be raised to loading area height under full load so that the module combination can be moved under it. This significantly reduces overall length for the last mile for in-creased maneuverability on all types of construction sites, especially in combination with self-propelled modules.

In addition, the system includes integrated unreeling equipment with synchronized drive for jerk-free operation at the destination. “The new Goldhofer cable drum bridges give us everything we need. They are lighter and shorter than previous comparable solutions, offer easy handling, high maneuver-ability and cable unreeling – all in one,” says Stefan Ramonat, Managing Director of Energieanlagen Ramonat GmbH. “The cross-section of the bridge has been optimized to allow the cable drum to hug the ground for the lowest possible overall traveling height, corresponding to flange diameter. 100-ton drums can be transported on a (4+6) combination without exceeding the maximum axle load of 12 tons.”

“Another big advantage of this solution is that it is compatible with existing transport systems,” says Steinhauser. “With the help of an adapter, our unwinder can be retrofitted to Goldhofer vessel bridges in the customer’s fleet for a significant reduction in capital layout.”