At Richmond Engineering Works (REW), we can upgrade barge haul systems to accurately position barges so that handling costs are reduced while barge throughput is increased.
Our engineers can design a new drive system which will give operators a state-of-the-art system for positioning barges. No matter what configuration your positioning system is, we can upgrade it with the latest technology; increasing your productivity. With all the variables involved, river current speed, water level fluctuations, harsh environments, etc., our upgrades will be engineered and tailored to meet your specific requirements. The new system will be able to vary the speed of the barges, yet maintain the line tension required.
Our barge haul systems utilize VFD drives to maintain control of the haulage rope. This allows control of the barge with variable speeds while maintaining appropriate line tension.
The mechanical design of the haulage system is built with maintenance in mind. The brakes are easily accessible with stainless steel covers that provide quick inspection. The reducers are equipped with inspection covers and drain / sample ports for fluid maintenance. The haulage drums are flame-hardened carbon steel to reduce wear and supplied with bolt on anchors for easy rope changeout.
We can replace or manage installation of new barge hauls on existing concrete piers or foundations. Our barge haul design has provisions for steel anchors into the concrete, and are keyed to resist the pulling forces. The structural steel base utilizes a large footprint to disperse the heavy pulling forces and extend the life of the concrete below.
Upgrades and Features may Include:
Upgrade existing brakes with self-contained, three-phase AC hydraulic thruster actuated drum brakes to eliminate cable slipping and the difficulty in finding available parts for the existing brakes.
Benefit: A simple size, one (1) electrical starter only, is now required to activate the brake. DC resistors, rectifier, timers and contactors are removed and are no longer required to be maintained. There are fewer mechanical parts on the new drum brakes then often found in multiple disk style brakes; therefore, reducing maintenance costs.
Installation of our barge haul custom programming injunction with new inverter rated motors and variable frequency drives, eliminates cable shocks and slacks normally found when running two (2) speed motors for barge movements.
Benefit: Premature cable and sheave failures are reduced due to eliminating the cable dragging in the water or snarling onto unintended equipment during operation. The drive and motor combination allow for steady acceleration and deceleration of the barge with no cable slack or shocks on either barge end. Barges can be tightly held to the dock cell by utilizing a zero-speed drive regulation.
Our engineers will design and procure new mechanical drive equipment, often times with adapter plates to fasten directly to existing foundation bolts, to eliminate mechanical gears, bearings, sheaves and drums that have reached the end of their designed life.
Benefit: Maintenance costs will be decreased while increasing machine longevity with the installation of the new mechanical drive equipment.
A shuttle barge is used in barge positioning for loading or unloading operations. The shuttle barge serves as a guided tug for locating hopper barges beneath a loader or unloader. The shuttle barge is towed linearly in a slip by barge hauls fixed in place along the shoreline. The shuttle barge moves two (2) barges at a time; one (1) barge at each end of the shuttle barge. This allows for one (1) barge to be in production, while the completed barge is able to be unmoored, and a new barge brought to the shuttle barge.
The Advantages of a Shuttle Barge System are as Follows:
Our shuttle barges are equipped with marine duty planetary winches powered by a central hydraulic power unit (HPU). Spill containment and weather protection is provided on the HPU. The hydraulic controlled winches provide adjustable tensioning and automatic payout as the barge is unloaded and rises from the water.
A cable reel mounded on shore can feed 480v AC power to a control panel on the shuttle barge. The control panel is PLC controlled with push button operation. Visual indicators for warnings and errors are provided. On board diesel generator options available to remove the need for 480v cable to the barge.
The barge deck structure is compartmentalized and accessible for inspection. The tow knees are equipped with hardened steel, 1” thick AR plate. Option to use replaceable fender material.