Small cranes with big impact: ABUS jib cranes in a sheltered workshop in Norway

The non-profit organisation Via Partner (www.viapartner.no)  in Kristiansand in the very south of Norway train people with intellectual disabilities in their workshops in order to make them fit for diverse tasks in the working process. Depending on the degree of disability the people require more or less support from their care workers and other technical aids. Pallets are produced in one part of the workshop where diverse woodworks are carried out. These pallets are made of several individual components and are then delivered to companies. Staff assemble between 10 and 100 pallets per day depending on speed and individual abilities. The equipment and ergonomics of the individual workshops need to meet the same standards as required in the commercial economy even if efficiency and cost effectiveness do not have the same top priorities in a facility such as Via Partner.

Two jib cranes were installed in the workshop in order to lift the material onto a workbench—where the individual parts are assembled into pallets—and to lift the finished products onto piles. One crane is a pillar jib crane, type LS, with a lifting capacity of 100 kg and a jib arm length of 3,500 mm. The second crane is a wall jib crane, type LW, and SWL and jib arm length are identical with the pillar jib crane. The pillar jib crane has a nominal slewing range of 270° whereas the wall jib crane has one of 180°. Both jib cranes are slewed manually. The jib arms consist of sturdy hollow steel profiles and are so easy to operate that the loads can be moved effortlessly and with precision. Both jib cranes feature ABUS electric chain hoists GM2 in order to lift and lower the loads. A suitable load attachment device is used which is suspended from the load hook of the chain hoist.

The local ABUS agency, Industrikran Norge A/S (www.industrikran.no) —who have sales and service points all over Norway—assisted with this project: they sold, assembled, and commissioned these cranes. The staff at Via Partner doubly benefit from these jib cranes: they can lift, move and deposit loads ergonomically and are trained at the same time to use lifting equipment safely. (On the photos you see the workshop manager demonstrating exemplarily how these cranes are used.)