Nucor Corp. has contracted Morris Material Handling to engineer and build a new CMAA Class F severe duty ladle crane for the company’s Crawfordsville, Ind., facility. The new crane, which Nucor will use to transport ladles of molten steel from the meltshop floor to the continuous caster turret, has become necessary in the face of increasing productivity needs.

When completed in October 2005, the massive 260/150/25-ton capacity P&H(R) overhead crane will weigh more than 700,000 lbs with a 75-foot span and will run on rails that are 85 feet above the floor. The new crane can be controlled by a cab or radio remote control, and will have a control house for ease of maintenance. The crane will have over 1700 horsepower total and will be the largest AC ladle crane operated by Adjustable Frequency Control in the United States.

This is the third significant overhead crane order Morris Material Handling has received from Nucor Steel's Crawfordsville mill in the past four years. The new hot metal crane joins a P&H 225-ton capacity crane supplied in 2001 as part of a three crane order, and a P&H 175-ton capacity charge crane with Adjustable Frequency control that was supplied as part of a two-crane order in 2003. Every effort was made to duplicate components used on other cranes installed at this facility to optimize spare parts inventory.

Morris Material Handling is a leading international provider of overhead traveling cranes, gantry cranes, hoists and winches for industrial and other applications. With operations based in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Chile, Morris builds cranes under the P&H brand trademark. Morris Material Handling is also a leading provider of inspections, service, modernizations, training and parts for all brands of cranes and hoists.