Manufacturer Eliminates Bottlenecks and Safety Risks with Gorbel® Work Station Cranes

The Challenge:

Quadco manufactures heavy-duty forestry felling heads. Their production process involves maneuvering steel components into a robotic welding cell. These parts are essential for logging and land-clearing machinery.

The facility relied on a single 5-ton overhead bridge crane to service multiple workstations. This setup created a bottleneck. When the crane was busy, other assemblers had to wait. To keep working, employees sometimes lifted heavy parts manually. This introduced ergonomic risks and the potential for injury.

Structural constraints complicated the problem. Quadco looked at Jib Cranes for localized lifting. But the torque and tension these cranes exert on the floor raised concerns about cracking the concrete slab. This ruled them out.

The Solution:

Quadco selected Gorbel® Work Station Cranes to fix the workflow issues without damaging the building’s floor.

The engineering team chose a Free Standing configuration. Unlike Jib cranes, this design distributes the load across multiple columns. It eliminates the high-tension point loads that worried facility managers. The team installed localized lifting systems without adding expensive foundation reinforcement.

The Execution:

The project placed three separate Gorbel® Work Station Crane cells around the existing 5-ton bridge crane. This approach decentralized material handling.

Each cell uses an "open side" configuration. This cantilever design removes vertical columns on the feed side. Forklifts and assemblers have clear access to move raw materials into the cells. The cranes now act as dedicated feeders for the robotic welding stations. The main 5-ton crane focuses on moving finished assemblies without holding up the line.

The Result:

The new system stopped the "waiting game" for the main crane. Assemblers now lift and position parts independently. Manual lifting of heavy components ceased, which reduces the risk of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). The Assembly Team operates without interruptions and maintains a continuous flow of materials to the robotic welders. Operators report the enclosed track design requires minimal effort to move loads, making the work feel safer.

Technical Questions

1. How do free standing work station cranes mitigate floor tension compared to jib cranes? Jib cranes act as a lever. They create overturning moments that exert high tension on anchor bolts and concrete. Gorbel® Free Standing Work Station Cranes distribute vertical load and moment forces across multiple columns and a wider footprint. They often require only a standard 6-inch reinforced concrete floor without special footings.

2. Can these cranes be installed in a facility with an existing overhead bridge crane? Yes. As seen in the Quadco project, Work Station Cranes can be installed "under-hung" or nested beneath existing large overhead bridge cranes. This creates a two-tier handling system. The Work Station Cranes handle high-cycle, lower-capacity lifts (up to 4,000 lbs). The existing overhead crane handles the heaviest loads and facility-wide transport.

3. What is the benefit of the "enclosed track" design for manual operators? Gorbel’s enclosed track design prevents dirt and dust accumulation on the rolling surface. It uses high-performance wheels. This results in rolling resistance up to three times lower than traditional I-beam cranes. An operator can move heavy loads with as little as 1% of the load weight in force (e.g., 10 lbs of force to move a 1,000 lb load).