Canadian LiftWerx, specialist in alternative up-tower lifting solutions for wind turbine corrective repairs, has developed a versatile up-tower crane for the wind energy industry that will help reduce O&M costs, improve turbine uptime and increase safety.
The GenHook™ crane has a lifting capacity of 27 tonnes and is fully electric. Its simple design results in a lower capital cost. Due to its increased lifting capacity the crane can exchange generators, gearboxes, transformers, and single blades in wind turbines. The crane and turbine interface fit in 2 standard ISO containers and can easily be lifted into the nacelle in pieces, using a small service crane inside the turbine. No winches are needed, reducing ground preparation and allowing safer operation. The simple design and easy mobilisation eliminates the need for large conventional cranes for corrective repairs.
The company has 2 GenHook™cranes in production which will be launched in Q1 2019 and is eager to apply them in the offshore wind energy industry. The design and production of the GenHook™ will be performed by the Kenz-Figee Group, in close co-operation with Eager. One for specialised engineering. LiftWerx, Eager. One, and Kenz-Figee are subsidiaries of the Meemaken Group. Photo: LiftWerx
