Background
Power conveyors are widely used in automotive lines, with engine assemblies mounted on metal pallets. As the pallet travels, the engine is assembled and dressed at numerous workstations, to be shipped to a vehicle assembly plant. Sounds simple, but careful planning has to go into designing product flow and workstations that ensure efficiency. A crane system is the obvious solution, but finding the right one is imperative.
The Problem
Even with appropriate ceiling load-bearing capacity, headroom can be a limiting factor.
If designing the crane isn’t done right, you can impede the assembly process, lengthen project timelines and cause installation costs to soar. This was the situation facing the General Motors of Canada (GM) engine plant in St. Catharines, ON.
The Solution
GM responded to the materials handling challenge by selecting a range of Gorbel ceiling-mounted work station cranes, achieving ease-of-movement, load-handling strength, while conforming to existing building parameters.