Project Challenges
The nearest port, Port Kembla, sat behind a 5.3m low bridge that no existing trailer could clear while carrying the 4.8m diameter, 110-ton tower base sections. Ares designed a modified trailer to fit, then delivered all 31 turbines through the town of Crookwell in 16 weeks.
The low bridge
The logical port of import was the nearest one, Port Kembla, but with base tower sections at 4.8m in diameter and 110 tons in weight, there was no existing trailer combination that could both safely carry the tower and pass under a 5.3m low bridge in Wollongong. The alternate port of Newcastle was nearly double the distance away, and would have been a much costlier and riskier solution as a result.
A trailer that didn't exist
When Goldwind Australia approached Ares with the problem, our solution was simple. If no trailer exists, then we shall design one to suit. The result was a modified platform trailer, strong enough to hold the weight of the massive tower, but with a cut-out to allow the tower to sit lower than normal. At a loaded height of 5.1m it could clear the low bridge and allowed Goldwind to use their preferred port, resulting in substantial savings for the project.
Through Crookwell
Unlike the Crookwell 2 route two years prior, Biala meant traversing the town of Crookwell itself with longer blades. Several corners in Crookwell had to be specially modified to accommodate the 69m-long blades before the short final run to site.
Sixteen weeks
All Biala deliveries were executed and completed within 16 weeks, an average of almost two complete wind turbines per week. That run rate held despite ship discharges, the Easter long weekend and disruption due to COVID-19, and came down to the combined efficiency of the AAT port loading crews, the Ares team, the customer’s offloading crews on site, and clear communication and coordination between all parties.
