VEM skills also in demand in Malaysia

The fact that trade fairs represent an important point of contact between manufacturer and buyer is demonstrated by the motor ordering of draft-ventilated IP23 and surface-cooled IP55 drives at TOC Asia 2019. The event, which lasts only two days and normally takes place in Singapore every spring, is especially for the Asian market Market pivotal point in the container supply chain sector.

VEM impresses with quick solutions

VEM was able to demonstrate its expertise when buyers from the container port PTP Malaysia were urgently looking for a competent, fast and trustworthy supplier for identical, customer-specific replacement engines. The customer therefore needed suggestions and solutions to be able to replace the engines in use on the existing STS crane systems (ship to shore) without any modifications, so that downtimes could be kept as short as possible in the event of an accident or major, necessary maintenance.

The VEM Group was able to offer functional solutions and a short delivery time to the problem of the container port. After further discussions with the purchasing management and technical maintenance, VEM won the order and was able to prevail against both the competition and the original engine manufacturer. Even before the order and production at the Wernigerode location, the final adjustments could be discussed in an on-site appointment with PTP Malaysia.

Motors as required

The customer requested two forced-ventilated IP23 machines with cooling type IC06, as well as an unventilated motor in IC410 and a self-ventilated motor in IC411 with protection class IP55. Specifically, these were a hoist, a trolley, a boom and a gantry motor.

Label	Explanation
Hoist	Is the hoist for raising or lowering loads.
Trolley	Is the trolley through which the hoist can be moved on the crane bridge or the boom.
Boom	In the STS, this is the part on which the trolley of a bridge crane is mounted horizontally. A load can be lowered or raised by the boom at a point other than directly under the hoist drum or trolley.
Gantry	The entire crane or crane frame can be moved radially to the trolley through the gantry.

The engines' performance and further design were adapted to the customer's individual requirements:

Label	Type of engine	Protection class	Power (kW)	Voltage (V)	Speed speed (RPM)
Three-phase motor with squirrel cage rotor, special version for intermittent operation	Gantry	IP55	26	480	1,775
Three-phase motor with squirrel cage rotor, converter supply, six-pole	Hoist	IP23	600	480	750
Three-phase motor, operation on a frequency converter	Trolley	IP55	105	480	1,783
Three-phase motor with squirrel cage rotor, converter supply, special version for intermittent operation	Boom	IP23	225	480	1,774

VEM makes a quantum leap with IP23 motors

At the beginning of 2019, the VEM Group decided to restart production of the well-known IP23 motors in order to cover the continuously increasing demand. In contrast to the IP55 motors, these have a different cooling principle, which is why they require a different design and a different construction plan. At the time of the customer order, the new production of IP23 motors was still in its early stages, so the range was successfully built up in parallel with the execution of the order. The development and construction of the engines at VEM were accelerated enormously through the project with PTP Malaysia.

Design and construction challenges

As the customer was bound to the design of their previous supplier, production began after the technical and construction details were clarified to ensure on-time delivery. The delivered machines are installed as soon as one of the existing engines fails or maintenance and repair work is required.

The project was an exciting challenge for VEM: The motors had to be adapted to the existing designs, which required precise and dimensionally accurate work, as the VEM Group has always demonstrated. In addition, the customer was unable to provide all details such as plans, dimensional drawings or individual units until production began. Due to the installation situation of a motor at the lofty height of a crane, small deviations in the design would have led to serious problems. Since both the old motors and the new VEM motors were to be used, the finished product had to be as close to the original as possible. Later adjustments would not have been possible.

Successful completion and follow-up orders

VEM was able to complete the project to the customer's full satisfaction and deliver the motors to the customer in Tanjung Pelepas in Johor, Malaysia. The last delivery took place in April 2020. So far, the trolley and the gantry of the engines produced in Wernigerode are already in use.

Thanks to the outstanding work, VEM has already won several follow-up orders. Since then, the company has acted as a supplier for the customer in question for any inquiries about engines, but especially for the replacement of engines on trolleys.