Energy

A large power transformer is usually the heaviest item on the whole site. It travels prepared: bushings, radiators, the conservator and other attachments are removed and shipped separately, and the active part is often shipped without oil, with the tank filled with dry air or nitrogen at a slight overpressure. The pressure is monitored with a gauge throughout the journey, because a drop means moisture may reach the insulation.

• The road leg is run on modular or low-bed trailers, and the heaviest units on platforms with hydraulic suspension.
• By rail, transformers travel on special heavy-load wagons; by sea, as heavy-lift cargo on ships with their own cranes or through ports with suitable equipment.
• The route is checked in advance: bridge load capacity, turns, overpass heights and power lines.
• The oil for filling on site travels separately, in tanks or drums.

After delivery the transformer is not energised straight away: the manufacturer checks the gas pressure, the impact recorder data and the condition of the insulation. Only then does installation begin.

Solar panels are not oversized, but there are many of them and they are fragile. Modules travel on pallets in factory packaging, upright or flat as the manufacturer specifies. Pallets must not be stacked higher than the marking allows, and lashing must not press on the edges of the packaging. Broken glass or micro-cracks in the cells are often invisible from outside, so careful loading and inspection on receipt matter. Inverters, transformer stations and mounting structures travel as separate consignments.

Cable travels on drums. A drum stands on its flanges, never on its side, and is held with chocks and lashing through the spindle hole or over the flanges so that it cannot roll. It is lifted through the spindle with a spreader bar or by a forklift under both flanges. Large drums may be over height, and a damaged flange makes a drum unusable for pulling cable on site.

An impact recorder logs acceleration on three axes and often temperature, humidity and location as well. It is fitted to transformers, generators, control cabinets and other sensitive equipment. Its data show on which leg and at what time the cargo took a shock above the permitted limit.

• The permitted shock limit is set by the equipment manufacturer, not the carrier.
• The recorder is switched on before loading and read after unloading with both parties present.
• The recorder report is attached to the acceptance documents and matters for the manufacturer’s warranty and any insurance claim.

Simple shock and tilt indicators on the packaging are used alongside recorders. They store no data but show at once that the cargo was tipped or dropped.

1. The customer provides an equipment list with weights, dimensions, drawings and the construction schedule.
2. ETIKO identifies which items are out of gauge, which are dangerous goods and which can travel on standard transport.
3. A mode and route are chosen for each cargo group, and bridges, ports and transhipment points are checked.
4. ETIKO files abnormal load permit applications in each country on the route.
5. For batteries, classification, packaging, marking and ADR documents are checked.
6. Impact recorders, lashing points and the loading scheme are agreed with the manufacturer.
7. Transport and customs documents are prepared and insurance is arranged.
8. Loading, transit, customs clearance and updates to the customer at each stage.
9. Delivery in the agreed time window, unloading, reading the recorders, acceptance documents.