Lightweight top crane systems – for easy handling

"Handling equipment is only popular if it is easy to use," states Stefan Herrmann, Branch Manager at Semcoglas in Nordhorn, commenting directly about a reason to provide the entire production hall with handling systems from the Bystronic glass group.

The entire hall at Nordhorn in Lower Saxony, which was commissioned in spring 2008, has a framework of lightweight top crane systems and lifts from the Bystronic glass Technology Center Bystronic Armatec. "At that time, the company asked for a fast and secure glass handling system, which could even be used by inexperienced operators," explains Dietmar Weichsel, who is selling Bystronic glass handling equipment in northern Germany. For this reason, he suggested a combination of equipment for moving light and heavy glass plates at a single work station. With this system, he met exactly the needs of the customer, for whom the safety of his employees is of paramount importance.

User-friendly equipment
"We want colleagues to move even the lightest of loads with handling equipment and this can be achieved only if the equipment is easy to use", reports Stefan Herrmann from his experience. The Branch Manger especially appreciates the Easy-Lift from Bystronic glass: "Its thick hoisting tube, which compresses the air, allows extremely accurate operation," he explains and demonstrates this fact on the glass loader of the production line for laminated safety glass. In general, the handling equipment of the Easy-Lift type is characterised by its rigid connection between the suction frame and the crane track, facilitating exact positioning of the glass lites. At the same time, the aluminium construction keeps the weight of the equipment itself to a minimum.

An overview of the product range
However, Semcoglas is not only working with the Easy-Lift from Bystronic glass. During the planning of the approximately 15,000 m2 production facility in Nordhorn, the Swiss-German supplier of system solutions for the manufacture of architectural and automotive glass was involved from the very beginning. This provides visitors to the Nordhorn-based Semcoglas factory with a good overview of Bystronic glass’ handling systems product range: Single and two-column lifts, manipulators and suction frames, each running on lightweight top crane systems – almost all variants are available. "Thanks to the excellent advisory service, the selection of products and equipment for the entire hall this installation was extremely simple," Stefan Herrmann reports during the guided tour through the hall.

The excellent business relationship goes back more than ten years: At that time, Semcoglas purchased a number of companies in which handling equipment from the Technology Center Bystronic Armatec was already in use. Today, the company is active in 24 locations at home and abroad – from glass cutting via screen printing to the production of insulating and laminated safety glass, the group is serving the entire value chain of glass. In doing so, machines of the Bystronic glass group are being used in almost every location. "In Nordhorn alone, we installed around 40 handling systems and suitable lightweight top crane systems," Dietmar Weichsel reports. In addition, there are lines for insulating and laminated safety glass production.

Advantageous handling
The reasons for the continuation of the business relationship are obvious: “The products are convincing and save space especially the handling systems and can be used according to individual requirements because of their modular design," explains Stefan Herrmann. And last but not least, this also includes the excellent service, as he points out. "A relationship of trust is important to us. We greatly appreciate that a brief phone call will suffice for a member of the service staff to address the issue shortly afterwards. It is important to have a contact partner who has the technical expertise and is 100 % reliable at the same time."