Skip links

Cooper secures landmark contract with Belfast Harbour

Cooper Specialised Handling, the UK’s only independent and dedicated provider of specialised heavy lifting equipment, has secured the contract for what is understood to be the largest crane of its type in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The Mantsinen 160M hydraulic crane is scheduled for delivery to Belfast Harbour, in the late summer of this year.

Belfast Harbour is a premier gateway to Ireland. Each year it handles liquid, dry and break bulk, as well as containers with tonnages approaching 25million, equating to around 70% of Northern Ireland’s maritime trade and 20% of that for the entire island of Ireland.

Mantsinen’s 160M machine is a wheeled hydraulic crane specified to service vessels visiting Belfast.  These range from 4,000-15,000dwt and handle a variety of products, but chiefly coal, scrap, grain and refuse-derived fuel. Consequently, the crane will be supplied with the Mantsinen MC620 quick change coupling device so that attachments can be interchanged in a matter of minutes.

The crane is equipped with a 17.5 metre curved boom and 15 metre stick offering 31 metre horizontal outreach and a capacity of in excess of 10 tonnes at 27 metre extension. It also benefits from the Mantsinen patented cab riser, which can extend 9 metres horizontally from the slew-ring centre to provide optimum visibility into the vessel hold.

In an unprecedented move, the machine has been specified with a 5-axle (20-wheel) undercarriage – more typically seen on the larger Mantsinen 200 crane – to meet Belfast Harbour’s requirement to reduce the individual wheel loadings.

With an overall weight of 234 tonnes, this machine is believed to be the largest hydraulic crane or material handler supplied anywhere in the UK and Ireland.

Commenting on the deal, a spokesperson from Belfast Harbour’s Operations Engineering Department said: “The overall engineering content of the Mantsinen crane and the solutions Cooper provided to meet our specific needs were the most important factors in the decision-making process. We look forward to the crane complementing our quayside capabilities.”

Cooper Specialised Handling Director David Cooper added: “We are delighted to have secured this important new business, which sees a high profile end user opting for the capability to load more while using less energy.

“The synergies between Cooper and Mantsinen, and our commitment to working in partnership to deliver cost-effective solutions to challenging handling issues, really came to the fore with this project.”

To keep up to date with Cooper Handling’s latest News please followtweetlink or like @CooperSHGroup

Editor’s Notes

Operating in all sectors of heavy lifting across the UK and Ireland, Cooper Specialised Handling is the exclusive UK distributor for SveTruck, RAM Spreaders, Telestack bulk material handling conveying systems and Sany mobile handling equipment, sole UK importer and exclusive distributor for Mantsinen cranes, Movella Translifters, TEC Containers and a long-term specialist in Konecranes lift trucks.  The company, which celebrated 20 years in business in 2018, also has a dedicated after-sales division, Cooper Handling Solutions, which specialises in engineering support.

Independently owned, Cooper offers total solutions in both solids and bulk handling. Its customised solutions comprise high quality, high value products and reliable service for businesses operating in the most challenging heavy handling environments, including ports, freight handling, inter-modal terminals, manufacturing and other heavy lifting industries.