Cranes for assembly of luxury yachts

UK-based Street Crane Company has supplied Goliath cranes for the construction of Princess Yachts’ luxury M Class tri-deck yachts at its south-west England facility in Plymouth, Devon.
The freestanding Goliath cranes support the assembly of 30-40 metre M Class tri-deck yachts at the historic Devonport Dockyard. The cranes lift large fabrications that need to be transported and accurately placed as the yachts are fitted out.

To protect operations from the extremes of weather, and from prying eyes, the South Yard assembly facility is enclosed by a lightweight, wide-span space frame building. This has insufficient strength to accommodate overhead cranes, while freestanding gantries within the structure would have occupied production space. Street Crane recommended floor running Goliath cranes, using a slim leg design to maximise hook coverage in the manufacturing area.

There are three cranes in use. The main assembly area is serviced by two mirror image Goliath cranes of 16 tonnes safe working load, each spanning 13.75 metres. These cranes have twin hoists of eight tonnes lifting capacity that can be used independently or in tandem to give maximum load flexibility. A 28 metre span Goliath crane, with hook coverage over the whole production area, has a single 16 tonne hoist and will share the outer running rail of the smaller Goliaths.

Street Crane’s UK-manufactured ZX hoists are used throughout, offering high positional accuracy with true vertical lift and fall, protecting fabrications and components from damage by lateral movement. For safety, all cranes have warning beacons, alarms and an automated anti-collision system. Wire free radio controls allow crane operators to select a position to maximise their visibility and safety. Pendant controls provide a back-up means of operation when required.
Street Crane and Princess Yachts have a long business relationship, with cranes from Street being used at all Princess manufacturing sites. The company first installed 10 cranes at the Coy Pool factory in 2002, when eight cranes of 6.3 tonnes and two cranes of 25 tonnes were installed for the building of V Class sports boats. These cranes were then relocated to a new factory when the Princess model range was extended.