The power to implement wind power

Nov. 1, 2008
Energy from wind power is one of the most important sources of renewable energy. The environmentally friendly power stations are springing up in ever

Energy from wind power is one of the most important sources of renewable energy. The environmentally friendly power stations are springing up in ever greater numbers and at ever greater speeds.

The Pfedelbach heavy load and special vehicle manufacturer Scheuerle offers an extensive range of vehicles for the demanding transport of plant parts, from heavy semi-platform vehicle combinations for tower segments and powerhouses, to self-propelled heavy load vehicles for internal transport. Heavy load vehicles from Scheuerle are also used as carriers for mobile cranes.

Transport of tower segments is carried out using a range of vehicle concepts. Segments for high-output wind power stations tend to have a large diameter. For the most part, a transport combination is used that consists of a low-bed semitrailer combination with a boiler deck. For smaller pipe diameters, special pipe adapters are coupled to the heavy load units to accommodate the tower segment. Scheuerle offers heavy load vehicles from the Combi range for this purpose. Heavy load combinations from the EuroCombi range, which offer an axle load per axle line of 20,000 kg, can be configured depending on the load. The InterCombi range is used for greater transport weights, which offers an axle load of 36,000 kg per axle line. If the load bed height is a criteria, then the transport company has the option of the FlatCombi range, which offers an axle load of 25,000 kg per axle line, but has a lowered loading area height of 770 millimeters. This range covers almost all transport requirements of tower segments.

In contrast, transport of the power houses, which are known as gondolas in the business, poses other challenges for the transport equipment. The weight is the particular issue. Gondolas for modern, large plants can weigh up to 80 tonnes and more. Transport combinations from the Scheuerle Combi range are used here, too. High-payload heavy load combinations are configured from gooseneck dolly, loading deck, and rear bogie. As a rule, large weights also necessitate longer transport combinations. The large steering angle up to 60 degrees, a feature of all vehicles in Scheuerle's Combi range, ensures that even large transport combinations are flexible; a basic requirement in reaching the most isolated sites.

FlatCombi chassis are also used as transporters for mobile crane parts. They take extremely heavy loads, are very maneuverable and flexible and, as such, they are the ideal foundation when using mobile cranes at extreme heights, such as when erecting wind power stations. Mobile cranes with a hook height of 140 meters have been realized on FlatCombi chassis in the past. Against a background of increasing sizes of such power stations, this mobile crane technology will also play a decisive role in the future.

Self-propelled heavy load vehicles are also being used more and more in the erection of wind power stations. The advantage: the heavy load combination can be kept much more compact even with greater payloads. The self-propelled, modular transporter SPMT 3000 offers an axle load up to 40,000 kg per axle line. Vehicle dimensions of 3-meters width and a load bed height in a driving position of about 1.190 mm correspond to the couplings between the InterCombi range and those of the SPMT 3000. This means that these ranges can be coupled together. The Scheuerle SPMT 3000 is equipped with electric multi-directional steering. There are various steering programs available, including circle, transverse, 90° steering, and diagonal. For a coupled large combination of electronic multi-directional steering and InterCombi chassis, the steering angle of the whole combination is limited to 60° maximum with the simplest operation using the inbuilt, programmed electronic steering. The great advantage of this combination is that steep inclines can be executed using self-propulsion with short transport combinations.

The self-propelled SPMT 2.430 (Self-Propelled Modular Transporter) is another alternative transporter and, with an axle load of 40,000 kg per axle line, it is the Hercules among heavy load vehicles. Weights of 15,000 tonnes and more have previously been transported with these Scheuerle combinations. The advantages of the SPMT 2.430 are its extraordinary stability and its extreme capacity. It can easily be transported to any site using standard long-distance vehicles. The SPMT 2.430 can be coupled to the SPMT 3.000, and of course to the InterCombi range, using a special adapter.

With all these variants Scheuerle offers a range of vehicles for almost any transport required in the construction of wind power stations.

Access www.scheuerle.com for more details.