They made it look easy, but the precision and skill of Port Taranaki’s crane drivers had their boss in awe during a heavy lift operation recently.
Dion McGovern and Mark Hofmans were at the controls as Port Taranaki took delivery of a 140-tonne electricity transformer destined for Transpower’s new Ōhangai substation development in South Taranaki.
Carrying out a twin lift from the 200m Samoa Chief cargo vessel, the operators of the port’s two mobile harbour cranes expertly raised the transformer, which was suspended between the two crane jibs, and carefully pivoted over the wharf before settling the transformer on the waiting heavy lift vehicle.
“They did a wonderful job,” says Port Taranaki cargo and wharf services manager Kim Daine.
“The guys made it look really easy, but there are points when the precision is absolutely crucial, and great skill, control and communication between the crane operators and the stevedore dogman [director of the lift] is vital to make sure the jibs don’t come into contact with each other.
“The lift was carried out safely and went to plan, so we’re very pleased.”
The successful lift was the culmination of meticulous planning over the course of a month, which included a number of meetings with the stakeholders – key port staff across the business, the vessel and shipping agent, Move Specialist Lifting and Transport, using their Tranzcarr Heavy Haulage equipment, and Transpower, the customer.
“There were a lot of logistics and technicalities involved, particularly around the heavy lift requirements, with our engineering team designing a heavy lift plan, working through the plan with the crane operators, and being on-hand throughout the operation to ensure the plan was followed,” says Kim.
“There was bad weather leading up to the operation, which we had to factor in, and we worked around other customers and vessel arrivals and departures… so the team did a great job.”
The transformer was then transported to site in South Taranaki by the heavy lift vehicle during the night to avoid day traffic.
Move general manager specialist division Warwick Bell says the project went “very smoothly from ship to site”.
“We’re thankful to Port Taranaki for the support received. The planning has gone on for almost 12 months with great cooperation from all parties,” he says.
The transformer had initially been transported from Transpower’s Ōtahuhu substation to Port of Auckland, where it was loaded on Samoa Chief before being shipped to Port Taranaki.
“In 2004, the very same transformer was discharged at Port Taranaki and then barged up to Auckland, then hauled and installed at Ōtahuhu,” Warwick says.
Transpower project manager Darryl Yorke says the project was logistically challenging.
“At 140 tonnes it was too heavy to be transported from Auckland to Taranaki by road, so we decided to take the coastal route,” he says.
“This required two 450-tonne road cranes to load the vessel at the Port of Auckland. Offloading at Port Taranaki was simpler, using the port’s shore mobile harbour cranes.”
An NZTA over-dimension load permit was then needed to transport it the rest of the way to the Ōhangai site on the Good Friday public holiday.
“Overall, the whole operation went very well and is a significant step towards delivering the new substation, which will power two new electrode boilers being installed at Fonterra’s Whareroa site, as part of the co-operative’s investment in electrification projects across New Zealand. The substation will also support resilience for the overall electricity network in South Taranaki,” says Darryl.
