Under Wraps number 2

The waterfront was the scene for more activity under wraps recently when Irving Shipbuilding's Halifax Shipyard took delivery of some large engines. The units were landed at the PSA Fairview Cove container terminal, presumably from Germany on a Roll On  / Roll Off ship of Atlantic Container Lines. They were then transported by modular transporter to the shipyard.

J.D.Irving Ltd., the company that owns Irving Shipbuilding, is a multi-faceted, vertically integrated,  industrial operation that also has an equipment division with a fleet of mobile cranes, trucks and trailers to serve them, and a number of modular transporters. These units, when coupled together can carry huge loads - up to and including entire ships.

The modular transporters arrived at the shipyard on a flat bed trailer behind a Freightliner day cab with an extra drop axle. (J.D.Irving also owns Universal Truck and Trailer Co. a Freightliner and Western Star sales, parts and service operation covering New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.)

 The units were lifted off by an Irving Equipment 500 tonne Liebherr hydrauulic crane.

 Once full assembled the modular transporter hustled off to the container terminal, with the operator sitting on what looked like a milk crate. (There were escort vehicles ahead and behind.)

 The load(s) were MAN main engines for the Arctic Escort and Patrol vessels currently under construction at the Shipyard. Each ship has four 6L32/44CR engines of 3600kW (4827 HP) each weighing 39.5 tonnes, powering two electric drives.

Unlike the military vehicles in the previous post, these wraps advertise the manufacturer. (MAN Diesel & Turbo is part of Volkswagen and also makes trucks and buses. It also owns the former Burmeister & Wain = B&W, and Alstom. It manufactures some engines in Denmark, France, india and China and licenses builders in Korea.)

 

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Heavies again

 The machinery keeps rolling in to the Port of Halifax from Europe. After few days for clearance and paper work off it goes again by truck to inland destinations.

Today I was lucky enough to grab a photo of a Liebherr LH26 Industry unit on its way out behind a new looking Western Star.

The LH26 Industry is a multi-purpose unit built for recycling/ scrap or timber handling depending on the accessories. Operating weight is 24,200 to 24,500 kg.  It is also has an elevating control cab, as per company information and photos at this link

Total Transport and Rigging has departed from their customary all red trucks with this sharp looking red and black Star.

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Hauls, Backhauls and New Hauls

 A tremendous amount of machinery has been moving through the Port of Halifax recently. It would be impossible to track all of it, but this is what I have been able to catch by chance.

This morning Atlantic Tiltload had a pair of John Deere timber forwarders, model 1910G and called out their  Freightliner number 18 and International HX number 19 for the work.

 Both tractors are equipped with an extra axle and at least one of the trailers is a Talbert.

The Earl Paddock company from Stoney Creek, ON specialize in transporting military vehicles and are seen here often with both wheeled and tracked vehicles from General Dynamics for export. They are usually in and out so quickly that I don't get to see their well kept fleet of Kenworths.

 

Many of these military vehicles have passed outbound though Halifax recently.

Today I did spot Paddock Kenworth number 512, backhauling a Liebherr L 580 wheel loader.

 Speaking of loaders I saw this big Komatsu WA600 ready for the road, but no sign of the hauler.

Another operator of well kept Kenworths is the oversize load specialists Transport Watson from Quebec. In 2020 the QSL (founded as Quebec Stevedores Ltd) acquired Watson + Sycamore from Groupe Robert, but have retained the Watson identity so far. Their trucks are well known in Halifax for hauling aircraft components imported by Bombardier. I recently spotted what appeared to be a pair of new Kenworths:

Unit number W3913 is ready for a wide load with flags in place. It is a T880 model with mid-rise sleeper.

Unit W3912 appears to be built to a similar spec (but with a bull bar), and a large headache rack equipped with storage compartments.

What I think is a new name to the Halifax area is Sunbelt Rentals (a huge North America wide operation with 1,1000 locations.) I recently spotted their Peterbilt tilt deck, bearing Alberta plates.

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Big and Red

 Navistar International seems to be selling more big trucks recently, after years of being mostly invisible in that segment of the business. Kenworth, Peterbilt, Mack and Western Star had that territory to themselves. 

This morning I happened to spot two big Navistars, and by coincidence both were painted red.

Total Transport and Rigging had this three axle job hauling a step deck trailer. The Cummins powered tractor had some nice shiny stuff.

Atlantic Tiltload is running this three axle rig which is dressed up a bit more. It was hauling a four axle Trail King trailer with a Liebherr truck crane, fresh off the boat, for the Sarens Canada crane rental fleet.

That unit, Number 19, is not their only Navistar. I saw another one, Number 301, a few weeks ago:

It was hauling a giant piece of farm machinery, a Grimme Veritron 470 self-propelled harvester. 

Gone are the days when International Harvester was the company name of Navistar International and its trucks were (affectionately?) called "corn-binders".

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New Liebherr for DeSantis

DeSantis Crane Service Inc of Stoney Creek, ON will soon be taking delivery of a new Liebherr mobile crane. The unit arrived in Halifax by ship recently and riggers are currently securing it to a rail car.

Most cranes that I have seen arriving in Halifax may have been painted in company colours, such as Mammoet, but rarely display any identifying graphics such as names, so this one is a bit of a rarity.

Yes that is one of the riggers reclining under the cab while making fast some of attachments.

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More Imports

Even though winter will soon be upon us, the imports keep rolling in (and out to westward destinations.)

Unlike last week's unit, I caught this Liebherr today before the riggers had boarded over the windows for its rail trip. (It only has six axles, whereas last week's had seven.)

This New Holland FX40 forage harvester and another tractor were getting a first class ride from Fairview.

Mikel Roy Giles from Brampton , ON used this long Peterbilt with Canada 150 insignia, to do the hauling.

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Liebherr - heading west

 Now secured on a flat car and ready to head west (that is the only direction you can go from Halifax!) this big Liebherr is all painted in company colours but with no name painted on yet.

The cabin glass has been covered against transit damage and a plywood "Do Not Hump" sign has been added to warn rail workers that this is a delicate cargo.

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Liebherr by rail

CN delivered this large Liebherr to Halifax from AllCanada Crane in Mississauga.

It appears that the crane my be bound overseas..

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Big Stuff on Big Trailers

Some recent oversize loads have caught my attention.

No secret what was shrink wrapped on this trailer:

But the hauler was a treat:

T-Lane of Saint John, NB brought out their big Freightliner for the job.

An Atlas Copco MT42 minetruck was ready to roll last week but it was not until last evening that Mills Heavy Hauling's Mack Granite arrived to haul it out. [see next posting on Kenworths for the red machine in the background]

Mills also had this rig at Aulac, NB earlier this month, heading west.

There were lots of miles on the Western Star (which sitting unattended, with its engine roaring at top revs)

But not so the brand new Liebherr loader. It was fresh off the ship and headed west. It's a Paron trailer, but I'm not sure about the dolly.

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Mammoet - goes biggish

Considered to be the most compact of its big mobile cranes, the Liebherr 1400-7.1 appears massive nonetheless. Its 7 axle chassis has front and rear steering axles, and a lifting capacity of 400 tonnes (at 3 meters outreach).

Mammoet Cranes of Ayr, Ontario, the eastern Canada division of the huge Dutch lifting company, will soon add this one to their stable, having recently arrived from Europe by ship.
Mammoet's parent web site is worth a visit just to see what they can do:
http://www.mammoet.com/
Normally the Mammoet cranes we see in transit here are new from the factory in elaborate black and red paint schemes. This unit appears to be used and carries a more standard colour scheme. A smaller unit is also in transit  from the Fairview Cove terminal.

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Roll ON, Roll OFF

The Port of Halifax is the terminus for a lot of Roll On-Roll Off cargo. Not just new cars (and there are thousands of those) but also the annual flood of European travel vehicles (outbound) at this time of year, and a regular trade in construction cranes (inbound). Some recent examples: 

Roll On

This German version of the Ford Transit with Hobby Caravan body was in Halifax on the weekend in time for this week's departure on an Atlantic Container Line ship:

Roll Off (and On)

 This sizable Liebherr crane rolled off the autocarrier Aida on October 17 and almost immediately rolled on to a rail car for transit westward:

 Due to the forward overhang of the boom, an idler car is also required.

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New Liebherr for Quebec

Guay Cranes of Quebec should be seeing their new Liebherr truck crane this weekend. The big 8 axle rig left Halifax last night by train. It posed some photographic challenges!
Guay is the largest crane operating company in Canada and the third largest in North America according to their web site:
http://www.grueguay.com/en/  

The crane is so big that it overhangs both ends of its rail car, and therefore needed two idler cars to separate it from the adjoining loads.

Two more Liebherrs

Another pair of Liebherr cranes arrived by ship this week. Unlike last month's pair, these do not have Mammoet identification, although they are painted in Mammoet colours.

First onto the rail cars was this five axle model. I was glad to get a picture before the plywood went on the windows.

The second crane was the really big one, with seven axles. It also has its own heavy duty Red n' Ready rail car.

The jibs, bolsters, hooks and secondary equipment for the cranes will be leaving Halifax by truck.

Liebherr cranes, another order for Mammoet

Mammoet, the Dutch crane operator is expanding its Canadian fleet again. They seem to have an inexhaustible demand for cranes, and four arrived last week on the ship Turandot. Yesterday they were loaded on flat cars and work on chaining them down continues today.
Three of the cranes were similar 5 axle units, likely model 1160 51., a 160 tonne capacity crane:

2. Mammoet number 2211 was the first to load, while 2212 and 2213 stand by.

3. Even with four steering axles it takes precision driving to centre on the rail cars.

4. The fourth crane is Mammoet unit number 2216, a 6 axle rig, which appears to be a 1250 6.1 model, rated at 250 tonnes.

5. 2216 gets its own matching red rail car, with a 224,000 lb capacity.

Preparing a crane for the road

A Liebherr wheeled excavator arrived by ship and had to be prepared for a road trip.
The crane drove off the ship and positioned itself on four jack pads. The truck trailer backed under it, and the crane then lowered its frame down onto the trailer.
A boom truck then removed the cranes wheels and other gear and loaded it onto a waiting flatbed.

1. Big Liebherr 954 wheeled excavator positioned on the low bed trailer, as a Ford boom truck removes the wheels.

2. The Liebherr's cab has already been removed, and the Talberet multi-axle trailer is bearing the unit's weight.

3. Powerful looking Volvo with drop axle, operated by Atlantic Pacific Transport Ltd of Clairville, NB.

4. One tire has already been landed on the waiting trailer, hauled by a sleek International ProStar from Filmore Trucking, also of Clairville, NB.

[Clairville, NB is north of Moncton and west of Buctouche.]

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Tight fit for Liebherr

Another in the seemingly endless string of Liebherr cranes for Mammoet arrived by ship last night. This one a 250 tonner (or maybe a 350 tonner) is a 12 x 8 x 10 (12 wheels, 8 drive, 10 steer.)

It takes a very skilled driver to get it onto the flat car in exactly the right position - it must be centered side to side, and positioned so that its weight is centered.

To aid in this operation, the centre steering axles are air lifted-as shown in the photo.

Once in position, lugs are welded to the car deck and the crane is chained down into position - a job that takes at least a day for the skilled rigger crew.

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