Interest in automated cranes increasing amid growing awareness of the benefits of full crane automation, says crane manufacturer Condra MD Marc Kleiner.

It is currently the most noticeable trend in Africa’s overhead crane industry, he says, highlighting a significant increase in the number of tender documents specifying provision for crane automation post- installation.

“Repetitive crane operations, such as those in refinery operations, offer clear potential for increased productivity through automation,” says Kleiner, noting that it will not take long for automation to gain a foothold.

He points out that South Africa has the technology and local manufacturing capability to deliver it, and the market is becoming increasingly aware.

While no orders for fully automated cranes, which implies no involvement by machine operators, were received by Condra during 2022, the number of enquiries for such machines increased year-on-year.

“It is the ultimate step beyond an overhead crane in which the machine executes a limited number of preprogrammed, automated operations, but still needs an operator to control the crane during randomised, nonrepetitive lifting functions (semi- automation).”

After the 2003 installation at a Durban spice company of Condra’s first semi- automated crane, which comprised a grabbing crane installed to pick spices and transport them to specific points for release over hoppers servicing blending and packing operations, continuous development has enabled the crane manufacturer to offer full automation across its product range since 2020.

Discussing motor industry indicators of anticipated advances in overhead crane technology, Kleiner says that motor vehicles often led technological development in crane manufacture by several years.

However, in the case of automation, these roles had been reversed, with overhead cranes currently leading the way forward.

“Vehicle manufacturers were first to use computers to monitor certain mechanical functions. Crane manufacturers lagged this development, and it was a similar case with the control and smoothing out of lifting and lateral movement,” Kleiner explains.

While it took time for crane manufacturers to introduce variable-speed drives, whereas comparable control technologies had been present in motor vehicles for decades, this has not been the case for automation, where the crane companies are in the lead.

“The autonomous crane exists and is already performing useful work, whereas the autonomous motor car is still in the experimental phase.”

Kleiner notes that about one in five enquiries received by Condra now includes specified provision for future automation, a requirement met by incorporating wheels and rails with tighter tolerances, and provision of fitment and wiring points for the future attachment of cameras with cognitive movement control ability, the main requirements for automation.

Unpacking the emergence of other trends in the overhead crane industry during 2022, Kleiner points to the fragmentation of the market into two main types of supplier: those delivering specification-driven overhead cranes of the highest possible quality designed and manufactured to fulfil a specific customer function, and other companies importing lower-quality machines for shoehorning into the application.

There are still companies that do not manufacture locally, but rather buy the closest suitable standard machine abroad with an eye on getting the job done in the short term, he says.

“They are not looking to the long term, and these types of cranes generally fail early on under the stress of the application.”

This trend has been exacerbated by the formation of small, splinter companies resulting from the downsizing of some of South Africa’s key multinational crane manufacturers.

Meanwhile, Kleiner says that Condra is in a “good position” going into 2023.

“We have a solid order book which includes contracts recently signed with steel companies and mines across Africa, both above and below ground. Locally, our factories in Cape Town and Johannesburg are busy.

“The market is aware that Condra represents more than just crane manufacture and commissioning, offering design and engineering skills that dovetail with those of architects and structural engineers,” Kleiner points out, highlighting the considerable experience of working with these disciplines to deliver the best possible lifting solutions within tight lead times.

“This is a strong foundation on which to build a successful 2023,” he concludes.