Handling of bulk goods: energy chain at the ship loader in the Baltic Sea port of Wismar

Profile

• What was needed: Energy chain type E4/4, chainflex cables
• Requirements: Travel length of 195m, freedom from downtime with high crane use.
• Industry: Cranes
• Success for the customer: Since the final commissioning of the ship loader in 2000, no malfunctions have occurred in the energy chain area.

Technical data of the application:

The ship loader has a conveying capacity of 720 tons per hour. It travels at a speed of 20 m/min with a travel length of 195 m.  A wide range of different bulk materials of various types and consistencies are handled. Due to the elimination of other loaders and the high utilisation, the conversion of the loader had to be designed from the outset so that it could withstand the heavy loads at all times. Despite the lack of redundancy through replacement systems, longer downtimes must not occur.
Since the final commissioning of the ship loader in 2000, no disturbances have occurred in the energy chain, neither mechanical nor concerning cables. No cable, no chain link had to be changed.

Fully harnessed

The energy chain was delivered in pieces of one metre, assembled on site and fitted with the cables.  The motor cables and all BUS and control cables, including those for the Siemens PLC 7 programmable logic controller, which controls the entire system, are routed through the chain (type E 4/4, series 5050) over a width of only 300 millimetres.
Potential inductive interference fields that could affect the signal transmission have been prevented by special shielding of the BUS and control cables. All power and control cables with which the chain is equipped come from the chainflex® cable range.