St Johns Shipbuilding puts a 100-ton Link-Belt rough terrain crane to work across a 98-acre yard
A 100-ton Link-Belt 100|RT has become the everyday workhorse at St Johns Shipbuilding in Palatka, Florida, handling bulkheads, deck plates and fabricated modules across a 98-acre yard that runs on continuous heavy lifting.
A yard that keeps a crane busy
St Johns Shipbuilding builds and repairs aluminium and steel vessels — supply boats, barges and ferries — for domestic and international customers from a site about 40 minutes from St Augustine. The yard runs an 850-ton dry dock, a 400ft launch basin and two rail launch systems, with carpentry, electrical and machine shops alongside.
That mix produces a steady stream of lifting work rather than occasional set-piece picks, and it is where the 100|RT has settled in. Since joining the fleet the rough terrain crane has been used for heavy lifts across the whole yard.
What the operator says
St Johns operator Robert “Bert” Thorn handles picks involving fabrication parts including bulkheads, deck plates and other modules. He rates the machine on availability and ease of use rather than on peak capacity.
“With a Link-Belt, you get in it and go.”
— Robert “Bert” Thorn, crane operator, St Johns Shipbuilding
Thorn was particularly positive about the crane’s Pulse 2.0 control and monitoring system, which he described as straightforward for anyone already familiar with crane operation.
“If you know how to operate a crane, you could operate that computer. It’s in a league of its own.”
— Robert “Bert” Thorn, crane operator, St Johns Shipbuilding
Manoeuvrability in a working yard
Shipyards are congested by nature: vessels under repair, staging, fabrication bays and stored steel all compete for space. Thorn said moving the 100|RT around the site presents no difficulty and that confined spaces are not a problem, which is the practical case for a rough terrain machine in this setting over a larger crane with a bigger footprint.
The other measure that matters to a yard is uptime. Thorn said it is not unusual to run the crane for a full working day, moving from job to job as demand dictates.
“We can run it all day every day. We’ve never had an issue with it.”
— Robert “Bert” Thorn, crane operator, St Johns Shipbuilding
Link-Belt has not published lift weights or radii for the individual picks carried out at the yard.
Source: Link-Belt — Photos: Link-Belt
Crane facts
- Model: Link-Belt 100|RT rough terrain crane
- Capacity: 100 US tons
- Control system: Pulse 2.0
- Typical loads: Bulkheads, deck plates, fabricated modules
The yard
- Owner: St Johns Shipbuilding, Palatka, Florida
- Site area: 98 acres
- Dry dock: 850 tons
- Launch basin: 400ft, plus two rail launch systems
- Work: Building and repair of aluminium and steel vessels