Cranes tough enough for the marine environment

Uplifting examples

Equipment for a marine setting needs to have exceptional endurance and reliability built in

Li� ing gear for the fi sh farming industry needs to be able to operate reliably in some very challenging environments – even more so as farmers look to off shore, high energy loca� ons that are great for the fi sh but problema� c for equipment.

It’s not surprising, then, that a company that has built up years of experience working with the off shore oil and gas sector is now applying that exper� se to aquaculture.

Norway-based Techano has been working with customers in aquaculture for around three years now, star� ng with an enquiry from a fi sh farmer about standards for off shore cranes.

Techano Sales Director Øystein Bondevik says: “We realised there was a huge poten� al in this market. Whether it’s for oil and gas or for fi sh farming, off shore cranes are exposed to the same elements.”

The move to larger farms and more off shore, high energy loca� ons is driving demand for tough li� ing machinery. And like an oil rig, when an off shore farm has staff they need to be supplied as well.

As more farms move off shore the industry is expanding, just as the energy sector did, and it is subject to the same level of safety regula� ons as the oil and gas industry.

Techano have had to develop and modify their technology for aquaculture. For example, for Nordlaks’ Havfarm 1 off shore facility, the company built “train sets” where the cranes run on rails, so that one crane can reach several pens. The rail-mounted units are an established feature for cranes opera� ng at ports, but they have had to be adapted for off shore use.

Havfarm 1 was constructed in China and was sailed to Norway last year. Covid-19 has created challenges for the industry, however, since it has been diffi cult to get personnel to the construc� on sites. As a result, Techano has been manufacturing some of its high-end equipment in Norway, despite the higher costs, to ensure that its own experts are on hand to oversee quality control.

In Italy, meanwhile, HS. MARINE has become one of the leading suppliers of li� ing equipment to the aquaculture sector through addressing the industry’s specifi c needs.

The company focused on reliability above all, especially given the par� cular challenges involved in opera� ng at sea.

As the company’s founder and Managing Director Stefano Forni puts it: “Ours are not former truck cranes… [they are] cranes specially designed for fi sh farming.” HS. MARINE’s cranes are built for longer lifespan and easy maintenance, which means that while their purchase price is not the cheapest, the company argues that the total cost of ownership is compara� vely low. Moving aquafeed is one of the biggest jobs in fi sh farming. Danish transport solu� ons company FM Bulk Handling – Fjordvejs supplies ship loaders and unloaders designed to minise the impact of the transfer on the feed itself and on the environment., using “gentle handling” to minimise dust and wasted feed.

Originally known as Fjordvejs Maskinfabrik, in February this year, the company announced it would be changing its name – because the original was hard for interna� onal customers to pronounce!

FM Bulk Handling provides machinery for the transporta� on of bulk products including fi shmeal, fi sh feed and grain. The company said it has tripled growth over the past seven years and, as part of this, its customer base has become increasingly interna� onal.

The company’s Chief Execu� ve Offi cer Jeppe Bergmann Rasmussen also explained: “All the machinery we develop and manufacture is used in the management and processing of bulk products: fi sh feed, fi sh meal, lime, grain etc. Making ‘Bulk Handling’ part of our name is a more precise refl ec� on of this.”

The company’s headquarters and manufacturing facili� es are in Denmark and it has also opened a US sales offi ce in Atlanta, Georgia. FF

“We realised there was a huge poten� al in this market”

Top: Techano’s crane on Havfarm 1 Middle: Jeppe Bergmann Rasmussen Below: Havfarm 1

Techano delivers multiple lifting tools for the emerging offshore fi sh farm industry

Based on Techano’s pedigree from the traditional offshore industry, we have been able to utilise our knowledge to develop cross-over products for the emerging blue market – fi sh farming in rougher waters – by the use of our technology in a new context. We have a strong focus on, and understanding of, the fi sh farmers’ key requirements and values.

Techano’s rail mounted service units (RMSU) have been in successful operation onboard the offshore fi sh farm, Havfarm1, since its start up. The crane sets are rail driven, enabling them to serve all six pens, minimising the need for costly external service vessels. The units are also equipped with capstan winches, cabin and an offshore crane, and thus serving both inboard and outboard lifting operations.

The deliveries also include a system for fi sh transfer between the farm and the live fi sh carriers, with hoses, handling system and connections both inside and outside the fi sh farm.

Techano has developed a fi sh crowding system for traditional open pens, improving both fi sh health and logistical requirements.

Another major milestone in lifting technology is supplying

Norway Royal Salmon’s submersible fi sh farm, Arctic Offshore Farm (AOF). The deliveries include a set of mobile net handling winches, chain jacks for bottom ring operation, cranes and a motioncompensated slipway for the service boat.

Techano also delivers cranes and deck machinery to the traditional fi shing industry. Currently, a series of 11 shipsets for trawlers are under delivery.

Above: Techano Rail Mounted Service Units and fi sh transfer system onboard Nordlaks Havfarm Right: Techano Off shore crane for Nordlaks Havfarm

Effective ship loaders and ship unloaders

– low impact on feed and environment.

Ship loader solutions from FM Bulk Handling – Fjordvejs are built to last and tailor-made for each ship or land-based installation. When fitted to a ship, our ship unloader provides equally effective and low-impact distribution of feed into silos on the water at the individual farms.

Specialising and solving problems for over six decades

Fabriksvej 14, V. Lyby DK-7800 Skive +45 97 58 42 00

post@fmbulk.com

HS.MARINE

– the reliable solution

Designing cranes specifi cally for aquaculture produces better results for the user

Reliability, effi ciency and a service always opera� onal and able to respond to any request in a very short � me. These are the three keywords that have made HS. MARINE, a manufacturer of marine cranes, one of the main players in the market.

In the company’s headquarters in Viadana (Mantua), in a strategic area between Milan, Bologna and Verona, new projects and challenges for the future are born. A future in which fi sh farming plays a major role in the development of HS.MARINE.

“Fish farming,” explains Stefano Forni, founder and Managing Director of HS.MARINE, “Is today the core business of our produc� on. Over the years we have developed a technology dedicated to fi sh farming and we have created a range of specialised cranes”.

Also for this reason in recent years HS.MARINE has recorded a strong increase both in produc� on and in orders, so much so that it was necessary to move into a new produc� on site, larger and more advanced than the previous one.

Stefano Forni says: “Our business plan was based on the observa� on that the marine crane market was primarily made up using truck designed cranes converted for marine use. Observing the lifespan of the cranes on the marine market and the costs of the service at sea, we understood that the main issue was reliability, so we decided to develop a specifi c design for the applica� on and to focus on quality solu� ons and on the quality of the components.

“All crane designs have been specially developed and improved for opera� on in the marine environment with a par� cular a� en� on to fi sh farming ac� vity. All structures have been designed to take up heavy lateral forces and to have a low value of elas� c defl ec� on under load. All parts have been designed and protected for easy maintenance. Each crane components and each crane parts are selected and designed for long life.

“I repeat: ours are not former truck cranes, ‘marinised’. Ours are cranes specially designed for fi sh farming. At fi rst they may seem more expensive, perhaps we have a premium price, but ul� mately we are the cheapest solu� on because, unlike other cranes, ours are designed to last and therefore we have the lowest cost of ownership on the market. That’s why, especially in fi sh farming, we have so many repeat customers.”

“Ul� mately we are the cheapest solu� on because… ours are designed to last”

Above: HS.MARINE have supplied cranes up to 34 metres outreach, for hois� ng the bird net on the larger farms Below: Net haulers can also be integrated in the cranes

Longer lifespan

Customers agree that HS.MARINE cranes have a longer lifespan and on the fact that HS.MARINE cranes are designed to minimise and simplify maintenance.

At the same � me, the cranes’ reliability reduces the need for spares and, consequently, opera� onal costs. This is the reason why the Italian producer gets so many sa� sfi ed and repeated customers. In fact, the HS.MARINE design concept, the quality of the components and the surface treatment reduce maintenance and life� me costs, simplify the inspec� on ac� vi� es and minimise the need for spares and recoa� ng.

Reliability

The fi sh farming industry needs equipment of the highest level of quality to ensure reliable and safe opera� ons. That’s why HS.MARINE design focus is reliability, combined with easy and low maintenance. All components have been designed and selected to guarantee worldwide availability, easy inspec� on, low maintenance and easy service.

Safety

To support the progress of the fi sh farming industry and to guarantee safety, equipment needs to be specially designed and developed for this applica� on. It is now evident to the major operators that truck cranes or marinized cranes are not a good solu� on for fi sh farming industry. HS.MARINE cranes are prepared for the tough marine environment and are designed and built from the ground up for marine use, with high a� en� on to detail. HS.MARINE cranes can work in any confi gura� ons: no ma� er if the boom is fully extended ver� cally or if it is knuckled downwards. In every posi� on the safe working load can be moved by any crane cylinders, including the telescopic ones.

Stefano Forni concludes: “An exclusive support team ‘HS.Equipment’ has been established in The Netherlands since 2014 for sales and service ac� vity. In despite of the recent market crisis HS.Marine is growing quickly, in order always to provide the best solu� on”. FF