New 2400mt quayside crane completes Huisman China’s yard
On 15 December Huisman China, a 100% subsidiary of the Dutch specialist in Lifting, Drilling and Subsea solutions, completed the installation of a 2400mt SWL quayside crane at their Zhangzhou (Fujian) fabrication yard. This event is an important milestone in the development of the Huisman China yard that was founded in 2007, and currently employs a staff of 850. Located in Xiamen port it has direct deepwater access to the Taiwan Strait, and is therefore well suited for loading and installations of heavy steel constructions on large (offshore) vessels.
Named the Skyhook crane, and referred to as the strongest moving quayside crane in the world, the Skyhook crane is specially designed and fabricated by and for Huisman China’s Zhangzhou yard. The crane has two main lifting configurations: a heavy lift configuration, capable of lifting 2400mt at 30m outreach (maximum lifting height of 100m) and an extended reach configuration, capable of placing a 200mt load at 90m outreach (maximum lifting height of 140m). The crane can travel along the 380m long quayside, and is capable of travelling this distance with a load of 2400mt in its hooks. Besides it being an impressive landmark in the Xiamen port /Zhangzhou area, it will create new business opportunities for Huisman China with handling, storage and installation of (heavy) project cargo.
The quayside application and design started in 2009 and construction (by reclamation) started on 23 January 2011. In total 100,000 square meters of land was reclaimed, which is converted into a 380m long quayside (with a load bearing capacity up to 40mt/sqm) and a storage yard of 86,000square meter. To facilitate Ro-Ro operations for transport of heavy project cargo, the quay is equipped with special Ro-Ro hinge foundations over a length of 130m. The waterdepth alongside quay is -14.5m and is therefore perfectly suited to berth the largest offshore vessels in the world now and in the future.