"IT DEPENDS ON THE TECHNOLOGY" - TII INNOVATIONS FOR TRANSPORTING WIND POWER PLANTS

The wind power industry has plainly developed into one of the "boom" industries. The TII Group (SCHEUERLE, NICOLAS and KAMAG) also offers tailor-made solutions for reliable transportation of offshore and onshore plants for this challenging industry.

The world market leader is presenting new vehicle concepts for transporting rotor blades, nacelles and tower segments at this year's Bauma. SCHEUERLE is presenting a world first with its patent-pending blade adapter. The companies are also presenting innovative developments like the wind tower adapter from NICOLAS, which can be used to drive VESTAS V90 nacelles in addition to tower segments.

The SCHEUERLE blade adapter in starting position mounted on a slab deck and drawn by a gooseneck.

Lifting and moving function of the SCHEUERLE blade adapter; the blade has been turned on its own axis.

The new wind tower adapter from Nicolas.

SCHEUERLE wind tower adapter mounted directly on the platform, payload 90 tonnes.

Even higher with the new SCHEUERLE blade adapter
SCHEUERLE is now bringing a highlight in the transport of wind power plant parts to the market. This is a new form of transport for rotor blades for the final stretch to a wind power station site, which is difficult to access. Twisty roads previously required laborious manoeuvring or even the unloading of the vehicle and moving the load by crane, making them a difficult and time-consuming obstacle, but now SCHEUERLE is offering the optimum solution with its patent-pending blade adapter This can be fitted very easily either to the self-propelled InterCombi SP or to a slab deck of a trailer combination. It also has a lifting, lowering and turning device. The lifting and lowering function moves one side of the blade upwards via a remote signal, so that the tip of the blade points upward at an angle of up to 23 °. It can then be moved to the left or right meaning that it can "float" over supporting walls, trees, buildings or other obstacles. Additionally, the blade can be turned on its own longitudinal axis and is moved out of the wind - taking wind loads into account. This guarantees the vehicle's stability.

This new SCHEUERLE system can be used for semi-trailer combinations or for self-propelled vehicles. Mounted on a slab deck and drawn by a tractor with gooseneck, the combination can be coupled to the conventional SCHEUERLE InterCombi depending on the length of the blade. If the adapter is fixed to the InterCombi SP, then drive is effected via a PPU (PowerPackUnit). Here, the adapter is screwed directly to the platform's load bed.

Versatile uses of adapter technology
Transporting wind tower segments can be effected with portal deck or with special tower adapters depending on the tower design. The TII Group adapters can easily be adjusted to the individual pipe diameter and be firmly connected to the tower segment.
NICOLAS is presenting something new at the Bauma in Munich with its innovative, telescopic adapter technology. Not just wind towers can now be moved with this adapter. It is also designed to transport VESTAS V90 nacelles. The adapter has special clamps that enable secure transportation of the VESTAS V90 nacelles.
Wind tower segments up to 120 tonnes and with an internal diameter of 5,500 mm can be moved. The adapter is precisely adjusted to the individual segment via remote control.
The whole adapter system, i.e. adapter + supporting tip + swivelling bolster, weighs in at an astonishing "flyweight" of just 19 tonnes!
 
The NICOLAS adapter is compatible with platform trailers from sister companies KAMAG and SCHEUERLE.

SCHEUERLE will also present a new wind tower adapter at this year's Bauma. Designed for wind tower segments up to 90 tonnes with a diameter of up to 5,000 mm, the new adapter is compatible with the whole SCHEUERLE Combi series (EuroCombi, FlatCombi, InterCombi) and with the SCHEUERLE-KAMAG K25. The adapter can either be mounted directly on the platform or be used as a free-turning device with supporting tip frame and swivelling bolster.
At customer request the wind tower adapter can also be configured for use with the WideCombi, specially developed by SCHEUERLE for the American market.

The new tower adapters from the TII Group also offer the best operating comfort with simple and quick handling and have been developed in close cooperation with customers.

"It depends on the technology!"
SCHEUERLE, NICOLAS and KAMAG also have numerous options for transporting nacelles of different weight classes. Depending on the dimensions and weight, vehicle combinations can be configured that are precisely adjusted to the transport task. The SCHEUERLE Combi range, the new SCHEUERLE-KAMAG K25 and the MDEL from NICOLAS are pros when it comes to road transport. Combined with - or without - flatbed or portal decks, the combinations guarantee extremely cost-effective transport. To transport heavy nacelles there is also the Allrounder SPMT (self-propelled modular transporter) and SPMT3000, to move wind power plant segments safely and reliably on public roads and in-plant terrain. The STEPS.3 control technology developed by SCHEUERLE facilitates positioning of the heaviest loads with pin-point accuracy. The electronic multi-mode steering makes the combinations extremely agile and manoeuvrable. This means all types of wind power plants can be moved, regardless of length, height or width.

Aside from the array of platform vehicles, semi-trailers and self-propelled vehicle combinations that are in daily use on public roads and at the production sites of the wind power plant manufacturers, the rotor blades, tower segments and nacelles also regularly need to be moved to remote sites, over difficult terrain, often with steep inclines. For this reason, the resourceful engineers at SCHEUERLE Fahrzeugfabrik have come up with an extremely innovative world first: the InterCombi PB, the "PowerBooster" from SCHEUERLE, has been specially developed for use of heavy load combinations on transport routes with incline. The InterCombi PB has all features that users of the SCHEUERLE InterCombi will be used to, but the PowerBooster is also equipped with shiftable drive axles and can also be powered by an equally shiftable PowerPackUnit. The driver starts the powerful 150 kW PPU (PowerPackUnit) before setting off. As soon as a tractor no longer has sufficient power to manage the incline, i.e. the speed drops below 14 km/h, the driving gear starts automatically, thus, providing sufficient thrust. The additional driving gear also shuts off automatically once the incline has been overcome and speed can be increased again up to 80 km/h in accordance with the road conditions. The InterCombi PB can also be coupled to in-plant transports as needed and can be controlled as a self-propelled transport combination via a mobile control unit.

Tailor-made transport solutions
Each component of a wind power plant requires tailor-made transport solutions. Sister companies SCHEUERLE, NICOLAS and KAMAG – members of the worldwide leading TII Group - offer diverse options for the transport of such challenging loads.

SCHEUERLE, KAMAG und NICOLAS will be presenting many other product developments at this year's BAUMA in Munich. See the companies’ innovative strength for yourself by visiting the TII Group in open-air ground F8, stand N823.

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