The gantry crane can be raised and lowered anywhere in a specific area. Monorail trains are subject to more restrictions. It can only work along one line. But for many factories and factories, linear transportation is exactly what they need. Julian Champkin investigates the monorail.

A project passes through the production line. Each workstation handles it differently. It appears at the far end as a finished product. It travels along a line, so the monorail can carry it. Of course, this line is not necessarily a straight line: bends and curves are entirely possible. The same is true for turnouts and points, just like on a railway line, so loads can be transferred along two or more different paths-or they can stop on the side of the road, or they can overtake each other when needed. For this type of setup, a monorail may be the ideal choice.

Linear coverage seems to be limited. In fact, compared to any other overhead option, the monorail can carry farther loads in the factory. A wall-mounted cantilever crane is essentially a local solution, limited by the radius of its cantilever. If the overhead gantry system is to cover it end-to-end, a rectangular building is required. On the other hand, the monorail can meander along the entire length of the factory, no matter what curved or winding routes are required.

Basically, when viewed from a distance, there is only one moving part-the gourd on the trolley-running along a steel I-beam that can basically be a swamp standard-although there are more complicated options and usually used-monorail The train is very simple and therefore very cheap. It is also adaptable. It is bolted together and follows the curves and angles set by the factory. Of course, you can hang any clamping mechanism you like on the lifting end of the crane, from simple hooks to vacuum grippers to custom-made lifting frames.

"The monorail is the ideal solution for scheduled and precise operations," said Matt Baker, TAWI UK sales manager. The company produces monorails with a capacity of up to 1.5 tons. Curves are what makes them so useful, he said: "The combination of a single track and a curved section is a combination that is often used when ventilation or other obstacles limit the possibilities of the beam crane system," he said. "In this way, production can be tracked from the raw material feed to the final packaging station.

"Regardless of the layout of your facility, the modular nature of the system means that solutions can be tailored to your needs. Linear monorail tracks can be combined with 45-degree angle modules to bypass obstacles, walk through corridors and be very precise Follow the existing infrastructure. The monorail and curve modules are designed to create an optimal suspension system and integrate it into your operation to the maximum. As the best solution for a closed system, planners aim to have a high degree of control over what to do on the factory floor And what can be done, the monorail and curve system is unparalleled."

And, as we said, their prices are very low-but Baker added a series of further efficiencies: "Monorail can be a cost-effective alternative to girder systems. In the absence of horizontal transportation requirements, It can fully serve the work area along a straight line. Having such a system without lateral movement means only what is necessary. This minimalist approach is arguably the most cost-effective, but it is also your operation The most efficient alternative in terms of volume, material, environment and space.

"If you are not sure whether your operation will change in the future, the modular structure always provides the possibility of expanding, rearranging and even converting the system to an open xy beam crane system at any time."

He said that the choice of track material will depend on the application and capacity. "For a flexible and truly lightweight crane system, aluminum is the material of choice.

Engineering aluminum profiles provide users with a high strength-to-weight ratio. The low dead weight of the light crane system facilitates ergonomic manual operation by the operator. Aluminum has a pristine, natural appearance, looks good, and is also the most cost-effective alternative for handling loads up to 125 kg.

"For heavier loads, your system should be made of high-strength cold-rolled steel.

When the operation requires high hygiene, such as when handling chemicals, medicines or food, stainless steel is also suitable. Steel profiles can handle a distance of up to 8 meters between the suspension points. This may be the perfect solution if the roof structure or floor area has space constraints or structural constraints. The steel profile is made from a single piece of high-strength cold-formed steel, which provides a strong and cost-effective product and forms a relatively light crane system.

If there are no external factors that affect material preferences, just tell us your anticipated operational requirements, and we will custom design a light crane system with the best performance. "

This solution is usually a combined system in which the support structure is made of steel to carry multiple aluminum lifting beams, which in turn are sized according to the material being processed. "This creates a structurally stable system that can accommodate multiple workstations and is sized for the heaviest processing loads, but can be easily manipulated by each operator," he said.

ABUS is located 50 kilometers east of Cologne and has an HB system for linear point-to-point transmission. It claims to have low headroom with wide suspension spacing, and optional electric travel of the crane trolley.

The ABUS HB light crane track system is designed as a gantry system, but it adopts a modular design and can be installed as a monorail as required. The bridge element is usually suspended on a trolley in the crane track, but is directly connected to the roof of the building or a suitable support, and the trolley and crane will of course travel along it. Suspension variants are so diverse that ABUS stated that installation is possible under conditions "almost unimaginable". The load capacity of the light rail system can be selected individually, up to 2000 kg. "Limiting components to a minimum can simplify installation and save time, and if you install it yourself, it helps to avoid installation errors," the company said-although they also provide installation services-and installing a monorail instead of a gantry system is certainly eligible for simplification and minimal Installation and cost. The standard system ABUS plug-in connection makes electrical installation fast and safe. Modifications and upgrades are easy.

ABUS has six rail profiles, all of which are closed and designed for different capacities and applications. "The enclosed profile can provide effective protection for the trolley and provide maintenance advantages," said Christian Karrer, their light crane sales manager. "The profile cross-section with unique design and manufacturing process also provides a high-quality running surface and greater strength, even in the higher load capacity range, by maintaining a low overall height, it can also be between the suspension points Keep a large distance; the joints between the sections are as strong as the profile itself. By preventing dust, the closed profile reduces the rolling friction of the trolley wheels, which means that little force is required to move the trolley by hand. The profiles are galvanized inside and outside. Milled steel and aluminum; the latter is lighter. ABUS best uses them for cranes in gantry systems, which usually have to be moved manually under special operating conditions, such as humidity, mildly corrosive media, or clean room requirements , There is not much challenge to galvanized or anodized profiles."

When is a monorail not a monorail? We have already said that they are ideal for linear production lines; but they can also be integrated into a complete system, including switches, turntables, links to cantilever overhead cranes, and can even extend through doors to external spaces to load or unload components The outer swing "sling link" arm section. It actually becomes a network.

"In such an integrated system, the same trolley can travel along the monorail and then onto the bridge crane, so it temporarily becomes a crane trolley; then it returns to the same part or another part of the monorail, and then enters different treatments as needed. Room or compartment. All of this can be done without putting down the load or unloading it from the trolley," said Todd Wagner, Gorbel Product Specialist, operating in New York. "This means you can save the transfer cart or conveyor belt; all this can be done overhead, there are no stops or obstacles on the ground; your floor space is completely clear and unobstructed."

Gorbel can even provide a descending part (or a lifting part, if you look at it from another angle) to lower (or raise) a part of the track from the upper level to the lower level, (or vice versa) to transfer the manufacturing process and continue to the ground floor space.

"Although these are not very necessary, because most factories and factories are distributed horizontally rather than vertically," he said. "But the basic concept of the monorail is that you can take your load from A to Z to the entire facility without worrying about'Where do I go to find another crane to move the load from here?'

He found that most of the applications are used for light lifting, low-capacity purposes: "Our main areas of use are in the 2-5 ton range," he said; "but you can have components and projects that go beyond these. Five to ten Tons are very common; if your application requires it, you can even reach 25 tons."

Veterinary applications are surprisingly common, both for carrying live animals for treatment, and for carrying dead animals for pathology or autopsy to extract tissues to determine the cause of their death. An adult horse can weigh up to one ton, which is entirely within the scope of a larger capacity monorail. More than one manufacturer mentioned this app to us. Not surprisingly, in molten iron processing, molten metal is poured from a ladle into a mold.

Wagner said: "We have a good border foundation in the United States and some overseas customer areas."

Gorbel produces their Cleveland Tramrail'Tarca' Track patented track and their own closed track system. The Cleveland brand originated in Ohio in 1919 and was acquired by Gorbel after several ownership changes. "We have retained the brand identity because the track is enduring," Wagner said. “Many owners’ Cleveland installations are decades old, they are still working well, they may want to expand or upgrade, and they consider it to be'Cleveland'.”

The Cleveland patent track looks like an I-beam, but it's actually quite different. The secret lies in the bottom flange. Wagner said: "It will be three and a quarter inches or four and a half inches wide-the larger size is mainly used in foundries," Wagner said, "It is made of high-carbon hardened steel. The web and The top flange is low carbon steel, which is connected to the bottom flange by an automatic continuous welding machine, which performs full penetration continuous welding along the length of the beam.

"This makes it different from traditional I-beams that have exactly the same top and bottom. The hardened track can be abused for a long time; it also has a slightly elevated running tread. On traditional beams, over time , The bottom flange will bend downwards as you use it. Cleveland craftsmanship also provides you with a consistent straight beam. The bottom flange always has exactly the same dimensions, so you don’t have to worry about processing the beams on site to match them during installation. .

"And because it is an engineering product, we are able to launch a new product this year, the railway life calculator. You enter the hoisting information, the load and the number of picks per hour, and the number of shifts, and it will tell you how long the guide rail should last. Long time. This is not possible with I-beams, but with Tarca tracks, this is what we can provide," Wagner said.

Gorbel's closed track system is made of aluminum or steel and is generally suitable for lighter, more linear applications; it has fewer switching options than the Cleveland racetrack and can carry up to 4,000 pounds (1.8 tons). "A good use for it is outside of lifting, for fall protection," said marketing manager Scott Goforth. "For example, if a distribution facility requires engineers to walk over a conveyor belt or the like, they can be tied to a closed track and still drive along the entire route of the conveyor belt in case they fall." Cleveland rails are used together to make hybrid bridge gantry cranes: the strength and service life of the Cleveland rails are combined with the lightness of the closed rails of the bridge. This hybrid vehicle has been a special order for some time. Gorbel launched an online configurator for its dealer network this year. "This means that our dealers can now design their own hybrid systems," Goforth said.

"Assembly lines and painting lines are popular places for monorails," said Tim Bambrick, Spanco's regional sales manager. "Of course they can be hung on the ceiling to make the floor space completely clean, but for this, the building structure does need to be reviewed by a local professional engineer. Our hangers can be installed on roof trusses with an inclination of up to 14 degrees. If the ceiling is not strong enough , We can provide customized support structures-cantilevered columns or traditional roof beams with columns."

Spanco manufactures closed tracks, which he says are more ergonomic. "The Spanco closed track system reduces the force required to start the load by approximately 1%, and reduces the force by approximately 0.8% to continue the movement. If necessary, the trolley can be powered. We have a right-hand switch, a left-hand switch, and a three-way switch. Change its course. Our system can carry up to 2 tons of weight on straight sections, but switches and corners can only carry 1 ton."

Erikkila's light monorail system is manufactured in Finland using Japanese Kito cranes. They also use closed steel or aluminum profiles; “Aluminum is widely used in the food industry,” said sales manager Mika Ressi. Both types have internal conductive rails that can deliver current to the electric trolley. There are three sizes of steel profiles, which can carry 250kg to 2t, and four aluminum profiles; “but we will add another intermediate steel profile this year,” he said. The trolley can be motorized or manual; the wheels are steel or polyvinyl chloride, "if the customer wants to run completely silent for any reason, it can also be rubber," he said. One possible customer might be the Helsinki Opera House, which has installed the Erikkila monorail to change scenes.

"Radio control is also an option; our trolleys have inverter control. If needed, we can customize trolleys, rails or brackets; about 50% of our customers buy standard components and 50% buy customized products." The suspension bracket can be fixed. On roof I-beams, inclined trusses, or almost any other object.

"A nice feature is that the system is assembled on site with nuts and bolts; no welding is involved. This means that if the customer moves the site, he can carry his monorail with him; if he modifies or expands his factory, let the monorail The train adapts to change very simply."

So the monorail is simple, flexible and cheap. Is there anything you don't like?

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