Lifting device from Pfaff-silberblau  for lock in the “Iron Gate” in Romania

Kissing/Germany, 19 July 2012 – The “Iron Gate”, on the Danube River in the southern Carpathian Mountains on the border from Romania to Serbia, is regarded as one of the most impressive gorges in Europe. Two river power stations built in 1972 – “Iron Gate” 1 and 2 – with a lockage had tamed what had been up until then the most dangerous section of the Danube River for navigation. For the maintenance of this lockage, Columbus McKinnon Engineered Products GmbH, Kissing/Germany, has now designed and installed a special lifting device. The linear lifting solution consists of four high-precision and proven heavy-duty screw jack elements SHE 100.1 made by Pfaff-silberblau. These lift and lower the heavy lock gate weighing some 200 t by 700 mm – with a deviation of less than 0.1 mm. Precision synchronous operation with less than 0.1 mm deviation The lifting device from Pfaff-silberblau is deployed in the area of the river power station “Iron Gate 1”. This has a lockage with two chambers measuring 310 m long and 34 m wide. To maintain the lock gates, these have to be lifted up by 700 mm using a lifting device – the perfect task for a lifting and maintenance device designed specifically for this purpose by the motion technology specialists from Kissing in Germany. For the lifting system, four screw jack elements of the SHE 100.1 series from Pfaff-silberblau each with a lifting special threaded spindle have been mechanically connected and synchronised via bevel gears and universal joint shafts. The low angle of twist in the drive and connecting shafts of a mere quarter of a degree per running metre and the reduction ratio in the worm gear pair go to ensure extremely precise synchronous operation within the system with a deviation of less than 0.1 mm. Reliable lifting performance for 200 t Altogether, the system from Pfaff-silberblau lifts and lowers a total load of 200 t with a speed of 0.06 m/min. Two drive motors, which are operated synchronously, ensure ideal torque division. Two bevel gears in each case are responsible for ensuring the correct speed at the lifting drives, which are required for reaching the necessary lifting speed. The self-locking screw jack elements guarantee that the heavy 200 t shutter is held in place at the necessary working height without additional support. The controller to the lifting system for the lock gate is also supplied by Pfaff-silberblau. It features a 45 KW reversing contactor, which supplies both motors at the same time, and is operated by three pushbuttons. The system is started at the push of a button and switches off immediately on reaching the limit switches. The operating status is displayed by four LED signal lamps. In case of emergency, an emergency stop button allows the system to be shut down immediately. More information about the lifting solutions and products from Pfaff-silberblau is available online at www.pfaff-silberblau.com.

About Columbus McKinnon and Pfaff-silberblau The company Columbus McKinnon Engineered Products GmbH, Kissing/Germany, has ranked with its brands Pfaff-silberblau and Alltec Antriebstechnik for many decades amongst the technology leaders in components and system solutions for mechanical motion and lifting technology. The portfolio ranges from sophisticated screw jack elements to innovative linear drives through to powerful lifting tables and wire rope winches. On the basis of these components, Columbus McKinnon Engineered Products also offers customised solutions for a wide range of different fields of application. Columbus McKinnon Engineered Products is a subsidiary of the listed Columbus McKinnon Corporation (CMCO), Amherst/USA, a leading supplier of lifting and materials handling equipment. Worldwide, the Group has around 2,600 employees at 18 production sites in seven countries and at 52 other company branches. Further information on Columbus McKinnon Engineered Products along with its brands Pfaff-silberblau and Alltec Antriebstechnik is available online at www.pfaff-silberblau.com.