UniliftGlobal.com

Gorgon Phase 2

Subsea spools and structures rigging

Unilift has been involved in some of Australasia’s largest and most complex subsea and offshore oil & gas projects.

Unilift was awarded the supply and fabrication of wire-rope and synthetic slings for Chevron’s Gorgon Phase 2 subsea spools installation. More than 200 steel wire-rope slings were manufactured ranging from 44mm up to 71mm in diameter and up to 36 metres in length. Every sling was proof tested and dimensionally checked before test, under tension load and after test.

Over two hundred Extreema^® slings consisting of 100% Dyneema^® fibres were also supplied for the upper rigging. The client chose Extreema^® slings due to the excellent bending properties suitable for smaller hardware diameter and shackle pins. All synthetic slings were proof-load tested and cycle tested.

Unilift’s sling making teams worked tirelessly around the clock for this project to meet the stringent delivery schedule for our valued customer.

Darwin Chain Inspection

Unilift’s lifting & rigging inspection technicians are a valuable asset to our clients who need sound and thorough lifting equipment inspections carried out. This particular client required chains to be inspected on their jack-up platform. Access to the chains could only be done utilising a crane work cage suspended from the crane hook. From this vantage point we were not only able to fulfil our inspection brief, but were able to get an excellent birdseye view of the project whilst swinging 120 feet above sea level!

Crane Rope Installation

Unilift is the sole Australian distributor for DIEPA Special Wire Ropes. Diepa is the OEM wire rope for some of the world’s most popular crane builders such as Liebherr, Favelle Favco, Gottwald, and Demag Cranes.

Unilift not only stock the complete range of Diepa ropes, but also provide a full installation and inspection service in some of the most remote locations on the the Australian mainland and offshore. Whether cranes, drill rigs or winches, our technicians and service team are trained and experienced in wire rope handling, spooling, socketing and wire rope removal & installation.

Cable-laid wire-rope slings

Unilift can manufacture a wide range of cable-laid slings for heavy-lift applications. Our testing facilities enable us to proof-load slings to 1000 tonnes at 50 metres.

These particular slings (used for a bridge removal project where concrete piles are removed from the seabed) were 96mm in diameter, with effective length of 30 metres. The calculated sling breaking load was 325 tonnes.

All heavy-lift cable-laid slings are produced in our NSW factory and distributed to construction projects both on-shore and offshore throughout Australia.

Boom Logistics

Unilift manufactured two 160T hook block lifting plates for the Boom Logistics windfarm project. The process involved fabrication, non-destructive testing and proof testing.

Unilift’s 1000 tonne test bed was used to proof load test the lifting plates then the plates were abrasive blasted, zinc powder primed and powder coated in the company colours and the company logo applied.

Hook block lifting plates (also called monkey face plates) are designed to fit-up to an existing ramshorn hook, allowing the lifting plate to be used for specialised lifts in the wind tower installation process.

Design & manufacture of suspension ropes for the world’s largest rail-mounted stackers and reclaimer

UNILIFT STRUCTURAL ROPE ASSEMBLIES — 130mm FLC ropes, 75mm FLC ropes and testing of 130mm FLC ropes - BHP South Flank, Pilbara WA

Unilift was awarded the contract to design, manufacture, supply and test boom suspension ropes for the world's largest rail-mounted stackers and reclaimer. The project — located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia — will have machines with a capacity of 20,000 tonnes per hour each, making them the largest in the world.

Unilift was approached by the design engineers to come up with a suspension rope assembly with an incredibly high breaking force, to meet critical weight restrictions and with a rope-strand surface to reduce or eliminate the vortex induced vibration. The team at Unilift successfully reduced the rope diameter & weight on both machines by almost 20% while maintaining the breaking force and design loads required for the world’s largest stackers and reclaimer. The sockets fitted to each end are custom made to also reduce the weight of the completed rope assemblies.

With the contract being awarded to Unilift, the challenge was now to design and manufacture a test rig with the capacity to accommodate these huge structural rope assemblies to carry out all required testing. Unilift therefore designed and manufactured a tensile testing machine with a capacity of 1100 tonnes and 50m in length, capable of an effective test-length of 46m. All the suspension rope assemblies were pre-stretched, cycle tested and proof loaded at Unilift's in-house testing facility located in Orange NSW.

After successfully meeting all the demands of the client, the team at Unilift believe their capacity to manufacture and test large structural rope assemblies is now virtually unlimited, and look forward to supplying more large structural rope assemblies on the international market.

Rail Construction Project

Unilift was asked to design and manufacture a rigging and lifting system for lifting 120 metre lengths of rail and 7 lengths per lift, with a head height of 10 meters using 260 tonne mobile gantry cranes. The main challenge was the lift height. With previous experience the team at Unilift provided a solution and successfully delivered two 60 tonne by 49 metre modular triangular spreader beams, 70 tonne Anoplogaster head rigging slings, 120 tonne GN-H14 shackles and custom-made rail grabs and associated rigging.

North Connex Tunnel

During the early stages of the tunnelling project engineers contacted Unilift to discuss the need for specialised lifting beams and spreader bars for mobilisation of drill rigs, articulated dump trucks and other various machinery down the main shaft in the tunnel. The team at Unilift suggested designing spreader beams with multiple-use lift points in view of using a single spreader beam to lift numerous machines. Although the idea seemed very challenging, the design team at Unilift soon had a preliminary drawing which could lift 3 different drill rigs. With the success of providing a solution, Unilift went on to manufacture numerous spreader beams and rigging systems throughout the construction phase with very happy clients.

Esso Wharf Deconstruction

Unilift were contacted to perform an inspection on an 800 tonne heavy-lift crane barge, of the main hoist ropes, boom suspension pendants and mooring winch ropes, prior to mobilisation of a wharf deconstruction project with various lifts of 650 tonne. All ropes were replaced, with the largest diameter rope being 108mm, all drawn from Unilift stock. The engineers from site worked closely with the team at Unilift for the rigging required for the heavy lift scope. Lifts ranged from 250 toone to 650T tonne. Rigging items were also supplied including 300 tonne wide-body sling shackles, 250 tonne GN shackles, 122mm 250 tonne Anoplogaster Deep-Sea synthetic slings, 32mm lifting chains and associated rigging.

Exploration Drilling Rig

Drilling companies are always seeking to find ways to increase the service or working life for their rigs. Downtime can cause significant losses in both time & money. Unilift was approached to provide an offer for the supply of rope assemblies for numerous rigs, and one of the concerns from the customer was the quality & working life of ropes for their machines. Due to many proven trials and repeat customers, Unilift proposed Diepa Special Ropes for all rope assemblies. The customer made a wise decision to accept our offer. Diepa Special Ropes are now installed on all rigs, and are now providing the exceptional working life promised when compared to other ropes.

Pit Viper Blast Rig

Unilift was contacted by an international company to analyse the performance of ropes for drill machines used in the blasting sector. After viewing the results of other ropes and inspecting sections of the failed ropes, Unilift rope technicians nominated the X53 Diepa Special Rope due to the exceptional resistance to bend fatigue, stable construction, high breaking force and tension free. Trial ropes were installed on the machine and inspected by Unilift rope technician periodically over a 12 month period. The trial X53 Diepa Special Rope was removed from service after 6000 hours, although it had not yet reached discard criteria. But after out-performing other ropes by more than doubling the useful working life, we have another very satisfied customer.

Bauer Piling Rig

Foundation drilling requires very high quality ropes, and most importantly the correct construction for the application. Unilift rope experts highly recommend Diepa Special Rope which has incredible service life and maintenance free. Unilift was contacted by one of Australia’s most professional piling company looking for a solution to their premature rope failure. Various well known steel wire rope brands had been trialled but the customer was not satisfied. Unilift offered the B55 Diepa Special Rope for this particular application which returned excellent results, an increase in service life of more than 6 times.