To ensure that heavy load deliveries are made safely and on time, heavy lifting and rigging specialists Lovemore Bros conducts thorough route planning to mitigate risks associated with transporting heavy loads.

“If we do not plan correctly, we risk collision with structures such as bridges, which could cause damage to the valuable cargo or the bridge itself, so planning is very important for us when transporting a load of a particular dimension,” says Lovemore Bros technical consultant Ryan Govender.

The company’s survey specialist conducts route surveys which then get submitted to an in-house engineer who ensures that the route complies with the bylaws of the Department of Transport’s (DoT’s) roads departments.

Once this process has been cleared, the company then submits the route survey for clearance from State-owned utility Eskom and telecommunications company Telkom.

Thereafter, the information is submitted to the DoT to obtain an abnormal permit to transport heavy loads in each of the individual provinces.

“There is so much to take into consideration that the public is not aware of, hence, the chosen route may not always be the shortest distance and may include lower speed limits. However, we have many years of experience in this regard and we are keen to assist with these special type of logistics projects,” expresses Govender.

Other Projects

In March this year, Lovemore Bros was contracted to relocate a 192 t Single Buoy Moor (SBM) with heavy lift cranes from the dockside on to a heavy lift ship for Transnet National Ports Authority in KwaZulu-Natal.

Jacks and sliding equipment were set up to rig the SBM within lifting radius of the floating crane. Special consideration was taken to get the 192 t SBM over the suspended quay without overloading the quay floor.

With the use of the vessel crane, the SBM was lifted and placed onboard for shipment.

Meanwhile, Lovemore Bros was contracted in March with moving six abnormal modules from a prefabrication plant to a new plant 20 km away. The prefabricated plant had to be broken down and transported before it could be re-erected.

Lovemore’s entire fleet of extendable trailers and specialised multi-axle trailers were used.

Once the lowbeds team had transported and staged the modules in a laydown over two days, the APMC then picked up each load using the jacking capabilities and moved through a tight plant into the crane position for install.

“We aim to ensure that all our staff, rigging gear and equipment – including our crane trucks and transport vehicles – meet the safety requirements for our clients. “We continuously ensure that our vehicles are smartly branded as visual evidence of the pride we take in our company,” concludes Govender.