CERN celebrates #GLAD24
CERN - The European Organization for Nuclear Research is delighted to take part in LEEA GlobalLiftingAwarenessDay #GLAD24 following all social media and sharing posts supporting the lifting industry on July 18.
Here we chat to Roberto Rinaldesi, mechanical engineer in the Handling Engineering Group, at CERN to find out more.
“CERN is international organisation, founded in 1954, which is the biggest physics laboratory in the world dedicated to high energy particle physics. I work in the Handling Engineering Group, which is a specialised division, responsible for everything related to the lifting equipment. So, design, procurement, installation, maintenance, transport and operations,” said Rinaldesi.
“I am involved in the predesign of overhead cranes in particular, and then the procurement phase. I prepare the technical specification, set up the contracts and follow-up with the crane design and installation on site.
“#GLAD24 is a great way to increase awareness all around the world of lifting operations and lifting equipment, which is crucial to everyday life. So even in a physics laboratory, lifting operations are happening all the time. We have a big family of equipment, approximately 380 overhead cranes, several hundred hoists, spreader bars and lifting tools as well as thousands of lifting accessories.
“To ensure safe lifting we ask our contractors to prepare a method statement with sketch drawings of the design as well as understanding what kind of operation is required such as the centre of gravity, lifting points and so on. And then of course, what is really important is the training of operators. We always ensure all crane drivers have the proper training according to the law. And we have a dedicated department which regularly takes care of the inspection and maintenance of the equipment.”
CERN has specific features in its lifting equipment to ensure safety such as frequency converters on all motion equipment, so there is no sudden movement of the crane and whenever a crane is used to handle fragile components like detectors or accelerator parts, it has a second break, or emergency break which can stop the load in case of mechanical failure. There is also the possibility to have a second hoist model which can go at micro speed, for a slow adjustment of the pieces and safety.
“#GLAD24 is a great way to raise awareness of lifting standards globally and to bring together all those working within the industry from crane manufacturers to stakeholders, suppliers and end users. It can be used as a common network between all parties sharing common practices and their own code of practice, which could be helpful for others as well,” added Rinaldesi.
For more information about GLAD visit: https://globalliftingawarenessday.com
