Call FREE: 0800 046 9840
Email us: enquiries@merritts.uk.com
Merritts were contracted to store 150 items of power plant equipment prior to their transportation via police escort ready to be installed at Ratcliffe on Soar Power Station.
Company Profile: Doosan Babcock is a power sector OEM, construction, upgrade and after-market services company that offers specialist services and technologies to the fossil-fired power generation, nuclear power generation, and oil, gas and petrochemical industries.
Project Outline: Merritts were contracted by Doosan Babcock Ltd to store over 150 items of power plant equipment until they were required for installation at Ratcliffe on Soar power station.
Project details
Due to the out of gauge nature of some of the pieces of equipment, it was necessary for Merritts to arrange police escorts to provide the required road assistance and closures to ensure the safe delivery of the equipment over the 26-mile route.
Storage requirements
The varying sizing and sensitive nature of some of the items being installed at the power station required regular maintenance and a permanent power supply to maintain the correct temperature, humidity and performance, as instructed by the manufacturer. It was also important to have a solid warehouse management system in place to ensure inventories could be carried out; therefore, reducing the time needed to locate specific items.
Transport
Working to a tight schedule, Merritts had to work quickly to make sure all equipment was loaded in time for the arrival of the police escorts. Items were removed from inside our warehouses using Versa-Lift technology and following a pre-arranged loading plan. The Versa-Lifts carefully manoeuvred each item into place on to four flatbed trailers which were then lashed down securely to meet safe transportation standards.
Once the trailers were ready and the police escorts had arrived, onward transit was made from Merritts’ headquarters in North Nottinghamshire to the A38 and then onto the M1 southbound via junction 28. Following a safe 40mph speed limit, the police escorts were well experienced in both maintaining positions in front and behind our trailers, as well as ensuring all slip roads were blocked until we had passed them safely.
The police routed our vehicles via junction 24 and the A453 and we were required to wait safely at the junction whilst the police arranged the full closure of the 2-mile section of the A453 leading to the power station. This was completed swiftly with minimal impact to traffic. Our trailers were then left on site overnight; ready to be unloaded by their on-site operatives the following working day in accordance with the customers’ requirements.
Equipment Used
- Versa-Lift Fork Lift
- X4 flatbed trailers
The project exemplifies our ability to work for customers in the energy and construction sectors and help then store equipment until factory facilities are ready for their installation. It also demonstrates our project management expertise and how our knowledge of police escort processes ensured the timely coordination of transport movements with all parties involved.
Richard Merritt, Director, Merritts
