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Truck and Track Winter 2018 8
BUSINESS NEWS
Over two days in July, the Collett Team turned heads as we
travelled across the North West with a 170 Tonne Super Grid
Transformer.
Loaded to our specialist 550 Tonne capacity Scheuerle girder
bridge, and accompanied by two heavy tractor units in push/pull
formation, the 69.6m long combination travelled the 67miles from
Ellesmere Port to Cellarhead Substation in Stoke-on-Trent.
“In the planning of this movement the Collett Projects Team liaised
directly with West Midlands Cheshire and Staffordshire Police
Forces to minimise disruption and ensure a safe passage for the
convoy, with each Police Force escorting and controlling the load
through their jurisdiction,” said Liam McLoughlin, Senior Projects
Manager. “In addition to the Police, our Teams notified the various
councils through which the convoy travelled who, in turn, provided
road space and engineers to modify sections of the route which
had been highlighted as obstructive in our preliminary planning.
These included extensive street furniture removal, the ramping of
splitter islands and the pruning of foliage to 5.2m high x 6m wide
envelope allowing the 5.4m wide combination to pass safely and
unimpeded.”
From undertaking the discharging of the Super Grid Transformer
from the vessel at Ellesmere Port through to final delivery at
Cellarhead Substation, the Collett Projects and Heavy Lift Teams
provided complete logistics throughout. Once secured within our
girder bridge trailer, our Teams worked to a strict two day schedule
to deliver the 170 Tonne cargo.
Departing from Ellesmere Port at 8am on Saturday morning and
travelling under Police and private escort, the convoy began the
first 45 mile stage of the project. After navigating the exit from
Ellesmere Port, our Teams performed the first of four ‘end change’
procedures before continuing on towards the outskirts of Chester.
This involved uncoupling each of the two heavy tractors and re-
coupling in a mirrored formation.
After completing this manoeuvre, the convoy continued on its pre-
defined route, navigating the outskirts of Chester before continuing
on towards Northwich and then heading South East towards
Holmes Chapel. Here, our Team undertook the second of the ‘end
change’ procedures, flipping the girder bridge 180 degrees once
again and allowing the 69.6m loaded combination to continue
on, arriving at our Team’s designated overnight parking site at
Barthomley Interchange late Saturday afternoon.
As 8am on Sunday arrived, our Team once again took to the roads
for stage two of the project. With 22 miles to the final delivery site
at Cellarhead Substation, the convoy faced two more ‘end change’
manoeuvres and slip road requirements to navigate the route from
Barthomley, through Stoke-on-Trent and Werrington before safely
arriving at the National Grid Substation.
With a total of 12 hours transport time, our Team arrived
early Sunday afternoon ready to begin final positioning of the
transformer. Still safely secured in the girder bridge, our Team
manoeuvred the transformer to the awaiting supports on the
skid way. Once the transformer was safely positioned on the skid
way, the side beams of the girder bridge were disconnected and
equipped with their support wheels allowing for the front and rear
bogies of the girder bridge to be autonomously driven clear of the
transformer. Now clear of the girder bridge beams, our Heavy Lift
Teambegan the task of hydraulically jacking and skidding the Super
Grid Transformer across the 23m track to its resting plinth.
Ellesmere Port to Cellarhead Substation