Edwards Moving Purchases Goldhofer High Girder Bridge

Edwards Moving & Rigging takes delivery of Goldhofer Faktor 5 high girder bridge. ENLARGE IMAGE

October 13, 2015 - Six projects, Six challenges—and one answer: The Faktor 5 high girder bridge from Goldhofer, Memmingen, Germany. With its unique 5:1 payload to deadweight ratio, the Faktor 5 is an investment in the future for the US heavy-haul specialist Edwards Moving & Rigging of Shelbyville, Ky. With a deadweight of 100 tons, the high girder bridge can be used to handle payloads of up to 500 tons.

 

“With our new high girder bridge we shall be able to play a leading role in the Champions League of the heavy-haul industry,” said Mark Edwards, company owner, when he took delivery of the machinery in Memmingen. The sixth to be built by Goldhofer since the product launch in 2012, the girder has a span of 47.9 meters and a total length of 86 meters with 2x20 axle lines. It is also the longest Goldhofer Faktor 5 in North and South America.

 

“That gives us a real USP, which will help us to further consolidate our strong market position. It is a real milestone for us,” said Edwards, he and his wife Rhonda christened the high girder bridge “Miss Audrey,” for the couple’s first granddaughter. “And for us a new era is dawning both in private life and in business,’ he added.

 

Stefan Fuchs, CEO of Goldhofer Aktiengesellschaft, is also convinced that Miss Audrey is the long-term key to success for Edwards Moving & Rigging in the heavy-haul market. “For the markets of tomorrow, like the power industry, it is important to react to developments in market demand. Transformers and generators are becoming increasingly powerful and therefore bigger and bigger and heavier and heavier. If you want to land the contracts for the transport operations involved, you have to have the very best technology available,” said Fuchs.

 

Mark Edwards sees things the same way: “We already have plans for five jobs we can handle with Miss Audrey. For us it’s all about being able to transport outsize loads in one piece. That’s something we can do faster and more efficiently with Miss Audrey instead of having to make several journeys with part loads. So she has huge potential for the company and will open up great opportunities. We’re already one of the top three in North America and we are keen to consolidate and improve on that position,” he said.

 

In 1999 Edwards Moving & Rigging acquired its first 12 axle lines from Goldhofer. In the meantime they are working with more than 180, and the company has become a key partner for Goldhofer in North America. “We are honored by the confidence that Mark Edwards and his team place in our products,” said Fuchs.

 

Miss Audrey is already about to make her debut. In the next few weeks, the Goldhofer Faktor 5 will be used to transport a 700 MW transformer over a distance of more than 30 miles. “We’ll handle that by placing the load on up to 72 axle lines to be sure of getting the permit for the job,” Edwards explained.