Q for quality: Glass manufacturer Q4Glass use ABUS cranes in their production

Q4Glass, Quality for Glass, is a company renowned for high quality glass. The company’s headquarters are to be found at Koszalin in the northwest of Poland. It is the declared aim of Q4Glass to revolutionise the architectural aspect of the glass sector. Employing ABUS products in their production is one factor for Q4Glass (www.q4glass.pl) to achieve their ambitious goal.

Modern office buildings are the calling cards of businesses and the architectural trend for glass façades ensures continuous demand for the high quality material in the building sector. Glass elements used in buildings have to be aesthetically pleasing yet have to comply with current building regulations also. The involved production processes—such as surface hardening, bonding, and lamination of the glass elements—lead to products satisfying the required strength parameters. Test series guarantee the suitability for use of the materials. In combination with functional glass very favourable values are reached in view of solar protection, heat protection, and sound reduction.

Q4Glass, founded in 2010, made a large investment of over seven million Euros when they built a production plant of 6.000 m². This fairly young company made sure their standards for quality were reflected in their company name. Their choice of supplier for cranes and hoists to be used in the production was also subject to the same high quality policy.

Q4Glass chose ABUS Kransysteme represented in Poland by the daughter company ABUS Crane Systems Polska (www.abuscranes.pl). ABUS Crane Systems Polska delivered the complete package of services, starting with consulting and the selection of appropriate crane solutions, through to delivery, installation and commissioning, and also including after sales service. In the production plant at Koszalin several ABUS suspended rail systems as well as some ABUS single girder cranes are employed. Two EOT cranes of the ELK type with spans of 24.2 metres and lifting capacities of 2 and 8 tonnes respectively guarantee the material flow in the warehouse. ABUliner frequency converters for crane and hoist travelling as well as for lifting make sure the highly sensitive glass plates are moved safely and securely. It is precisely in the glass industry that the ABUliner shows its full potential when positioning glass with minute accuracy or when travelling at infinitely variable speed with utmost sensitivity. Load sway is also greatly reduced thanks to preset acceleration and deceleration ramps.

Nine HB systems in total are busy in the area where the glass is cut. The HB systems have safe working loads ranging between 500 and 630 kg and crane spans between 5.70 and 13 metres. The cutting table for glass is served by an HB system with electric crane travelling whereas cranes with manual travelling are used for the machines for milling, grinding, and for edge processing. The single girder cranes of the EHB type are characterised by low deadweight and are thus particularly suitable to be moved by hand. A double girder crane of the ZHB type is the solution for higher load capacities. The ZHB system allows not only for higher SWL but also for larger crane spans, 13 metres in this case. Some of the HB systems have vacuum devices typical for the glass industry to make lifting the glass plates extra safe. Not only have the requirements of the customers as to transport within the production grown over the years but so have the HB systems. The different systems have been installed between 2011 and 2015 and are proof of the special characteristics of the HB system: great flexibility and tailored solutions for extensions, adaptations, and modifications.