Bison Metals

In the face of a complex project, Able Machinery Movers’ ability to pool resources proved to be highly beneficial for Bison Metals Technologies. Careful, in-depth project planning allowed for the right equipment to be used by experienced professionals to get a 4,500 ton UBE Extrusion press back up and running under budget and ahead of schedule despite a tight timeline.

CLIENT

Bison Metals Technologies, an advanced copper product manufacturer based in Shawnee, OK.

NEED

Removal and replacement of a piecer, ram, and ram housing from a 4,500 ton UBE Extrusion press.

CHALLENGE

The project posed a number of significant challenges: short timeline for project completion, size and weight of the machinery being moved, tight confines of the work space, need for overhead cranes, and active production environment.

SERVICES

The project required extension project planning, industrial machinery moving, rigging services and millwright services.

SOLUTION

Able Machinery Movers started with comprehensive project planning that involved coordination between locations so that crew members from multiple sites could provide their expertise. The team was able to come up with a solution that allowed the ram and ram housing to be extracted together with the use of 250 ton gantry, 60/80 Versa Lift, and 15,000 lb. forklift.

OVERVIEW & RESULTS

This project proves the advantage of working with an organization like Able Machinery Movers that has a large source of manpower and equipment. When Bison Metals approached Able Machinery Movers about removing and replacing the piecer, ram and ram housing of a UBE
Extrusion press time was of the essence. The team quickly coordinated across locations during the project planning phase to create a custom solution for moving the massive machinery in a working environment that was somewhat confined.

After extensive planning, crews from both the North Texas and Houston locations came together to ensure that the right equipment and people would be available to get the project completed safely in the face of numerous challenges. The extrusion press is an integral part of Bison Metals’ product manufacturing process, so the team worked around the clock to figure out a solution that would minimize downtime as much as possible. It was a task that could only be handled by an experienced team of millwrighting and rigging experts.

Using the overhead crane, Able Machinery Movers’ crew started by setting the gantry walking beams and gantrys precisely where needed in order to walk the equipment. Then using the 60/80 Versa Lift and overhead crane, the crew safely removed the upper tie-rods. Once the ram housing was exposed the crew used the 250 ton gantry to perform the necessary lifts. Due to time being of the essence the crew was able to chain the ram and ram housing together allowing in to be removed while still assembled.

After completing the extraction of the ram and ram housing, the machinery was skated to a secure staging area. Once there the ram was removed from its original housing and installed in a new housing. The removal and ram installation also required the use of the 60/80 Versa Lift and 250 ton gantries.

The final stage of the project was reassembly of the press. Able Machinery Movers’ riggers and millwrights used the same high level of precision to lower the ram housing back into place exactly and verify the press was operable with the new ram installed.
From the conception of a custom solution in the planning phase to testing and quality control after reassembly, Able Machinery Movers was able to not only meet the demands of a complex project, we exceeded them. Our expertise, resources and commitment to putting safety first in spite of tight timelines allowed Bison Metals to get their extrusion press back up and running ahead of schedule and under budget.