New technical feat for AMCS technologies at Hinkley Point C

New technical feat for AMCS technologies at Hinkley Point C

So far, 20 of the 55 cranes expected on the job site of the future Hinkley Point C nuclear plant in the United Kingdom have already been installed and all equipped with AMCS technologies devices. 

Among them, one of the cranes with the highest lifting capacity in the world, the Favelle Favco M2480D was recently installed and equipped with the DCS 61-S, the new safety system for interferences management and prohibited overfly zones. 

The specificity of this hydraulic luffing tower crane, with a capacity of 220 tons, is to have two jibs (one 70 meters jib and and other one of 30 meters). It therefore has two hoist winches and two hooks that can work simultaneously or separetely. 

The purpose of the DCS 61-S anti-collision system is to ensure the management of prohibited overfly zones (by jibs and/or cables and hooks) as well as anti-collision with interfering cranes, jib by jib, and cable by cable or together. 

The DCS 61-S was predisposed to integrate this new management of jibs and multiple cables. Indeed, it is an evolving system, developed to integrate the management of anti-collision and zoning for new machines. 

In order to respond quickly to the customer’s request, the technical challenge for AMCS technologies’ R&D teams was to guarantee the safety of the construction site and therefore the management of the two hoist winches on the same crane with two jibs. 

This represents a special feature with a major challenge in the sector of anti-collision. It's a world first. The crane supplier was also involved in the project. It has developed an access to interface the electrical signals of the DCS 61-S on the hydraulic controls of the crane, to ensure the two main functions of the DCS 61-S: 

The zoning: The system enables to quickly create prohibited overflight areas in 3D directly on the screen by associating geometric shapes with perimeters and static obstacles in order to limit the overflight of the jib and/or the load. The display of prohibited zones around the crane is done in real time. 

The anti-collision: The device calculates in real time and in 3D the distances between each elements of the cranes as well as the movements speeds. This in order to intervene on the controlled mechanisms to ensure a slowing down then a complete immobilization of the crane at a pre-set distance from the obstacle. The display of interferences and elements concerned by the risk of collision is in real time. 

Considering the concentration of non-standard cranes around each machine, the performance and reliability of the DCS 61-S help to ensure the productivity of the Hinkley Point C construction site.