engineers designed the crane around the exact specifications of the shipyard that repairs approximately 250 ships a year, each taking about 100 hours to complete. The MD 1100 belongs to the Port Autonome De Dunkerque, a government-owned entity. It is used by private company ARNO, a subcontractor employed specifically to carry out all ship repair work at the yard.
Design specifications for the shipyard have more in common with U.S. shipyards than those in Europe. The Dunkirk facility was built after World War II with assistance from the U.S.-lead Marshall Plan. As a result, Manitowoc needed to adjust the design with the most significant change being the construction of a 35' x 35' traveling portal. This portal allows the crane to travel on the 1,640-foot dockside track.
Gerard Vezant, sales director for special application cranes at Manitowoc, said the design changes on this MD 1100 were more than are typically required. “Each special application crane we build is adjusted to specific requirements, but on this crane we made more changes than ever before,” he said. “Our ability to deliver to the client's needs within a relatively short timeframe helped us win this contract. Didier Delorme, our business manager, was in constant communication with the people in Dunkirk making sure every commitment was met. And at our design office, Jean Claude Gateau oversaw all technical changes.”
Other changes to the crane included the fitting of additional counterweight plus further traveling bogies to help distribute the load. Both changes allow the crane to withstand out-of-service wind speeds of up to 147 mph, versus the 93 mph out-of-service wind speeds usually designed for. Protection from the sea air comes from a 240-Microns coating of special marine paint, while all mechanisms and control panels are housed in a container located on the counter jib.
Pierre Defrance from the work and studies department at Port Autonome De Dunkerque, said Manitowoc's ability to offer a total package gave his company the confidence to invest. “We handle maintenance for ships from all over the world, and for us, reliability was the number one issue,” he said. “We were also pleased with the total package Manitowoc offered. The company took care of the erection and commissioning and worked with us to develop a maintenance program that suits our needs.”
The shipyard has a reputation for high-quality repair work and a client list that includes the Belgian Navy. It uses the latest technology for both selecting and monitoring its equipment. For the MD 1100, Port Autonome De Dunkerque is using a software platform that offers real time lifecycle information for the crane, based on feedback from the load cells and frequency drives.
The shipyard in Dunkirk employs 40 operators, all of whom are trained to operate the MD 1100. Port Autonome De Dunkerque also trained a number of mechanics, many of whom traveled to the Manitowoc Crane Care facility in La Clayette, France.
