Aalen, October 2024 – In the paper and food industry, in petrochemical systems or maritime environments, as well as in agricultural areas and construction sites, containers, equipment, and machinery are often exposed to harsh environmental influences. Storms, salt water, high temperatures, dust and aggressive liquids and gases impact exposed surfaces and result in rapid corrosion, unless measures are taken early on to counteract them. This also applies to weldable lifting points, which remain permanently on the component, and which must ensure secure lifting procedures at any time – even after sitting unused for decades – while maintaining the highest possible resistance to frequent rotation and sudden shocks or impacts. Especially in this application, however, too little attention is giving to guaranteeing that lifting points are suitable to safely lift a load. Instead, often only simple self-made padeyes are used, selected roughly based on the component’s weight, and offering essentially no safety even for internal transport situations, let alone in corrosive environments.
Secure welding solution for harsh environments
With the INOX-ABA, RUD has developed a rust-free lifting point suitable for welding and loading from all sides which is tailored precisely to the requirements of harsh application environments, and which eliminates the serious safety deficits impacting commonly available solutions. It is part of the highly successful series of W-ABA lifting points from RUD, and provides a stainless steel option resistant to pitting corrosion and surface corrosion that can withstand even salt water or hot steam, while causing no contamination due to dissolving coatings or other particle wear – an essential feature in the food industry in particular. Manufactured of 1.4462 Duplex Steel and protected against rust penetration by a fully enclosed fillet weld, INOX-ABA offers all of the advantages users are already familiar with from W-ABA lifting points, in harsh environments as well. In addition to its capability for handling loads from any direction, these include increased WLL in the load ring plane, in some cases exceeding the officially approved load weight three times over. Other advantages include fourfold safety against breakage, as well as internal and external wear lenses to check for discard wear. INOX-ABA is available with WLLs of 0.8, 1.6 and 2.7 tons, and designed for ambient temperatures from -40°C to +350°C. The magnetic properties of the 1.4462 Duplex Steel (an austenitic-ferritic chrome nickel molybdenum steel) also allow for electromagnetic crack testing.
1.6 ton variant also available with PSA certification
Since the Duplex Steel used in the INOX-ABA also allows for joints of dissimilar steels, not only with other types of stainless steel, but also for instance with structural steels, the lifting point is compatible with a large number of different construction techniques. It has potential, for instance, for container building applications such as large boilers and tanks in food production or in the oil and gas industry. However, it can also be used on cruise ships, for instance, to handle a variety of lifting tasks. The PSA certification awarded to the 1.6 ton variant is also attractive in this context, allowing the steel to be used for load handling equipment as well as for fall protection. Together with its weather resistance, this PSA certification qualifies INOX-ABA as an outstandingly safe lifting point to protect personnel working outdoors.
More information at: www.rud.com and www.slingandlashing.rud.com
