Hospital Maintenance Facility Uses Spanco Gantry Crane to Maintain Helicopters
Products used
Overview
Geisinger Health System is a healthcare provider operating in central and northeastern Pennsylvania. Geisinger Health System is broadly recognized for providing high-quality care while keeping patient costs low.
In addition to providing typical healthcare services, Geisinger is also a leader in medical air transportation. The organization operates nine state-of-the-art helicopters through its Life Flight® service, which provides emergency transport for patients. The Life Flight program specializes in transporting critical patients from accident scenes, premature newborns, cardiac patients, and critical care adult, pediatric, and organ transplant patients.
At the Geisinger Health System headquarters in Danville, Pennsylvania, a team of technicians provide complete maintenance services for the Life Flight program’s fleet of aircraft. Workers at the maintenance facility perform all FAA mandated maintenance, including engine, airframe, avionics, and other maintenance operations in the 4,500 square foot hangar.
When the helicopter manufacturer implemented a new landing gear inspection standard, Jeff Gazey, Director of Aviation Maintenance, needed a way to lift the helicopters off of the landing gear. The hangar was already equipped with an overhead crane for lifting engines and gearboxes, but the half-ton capacity wasn’t nearly enough for the approximately 8,000-pound helicopters.
Solution
The support structure of the hangar was not strong enough to support lifting equipment with the necessary capacity, so the solution had to be something that could stand on its own. The first decision was to rent a gantry crane. This solution worked, but it wasn’t long before it became clear that the long-term cost of renting a gantry crane would become very expensive.
Jeff decided to reach out to D.R. Cordell, a local material handling supplier and Spanco dealer. Jack Hayes at Cordell pointed Jeff toward a Spanco gantry crane. They ended up purchasing a Spanco A-Series Gantry Crane with a capacity of five tons. The crane also has a clear span of 18 feet, seven inches, and a height under the beam (HUB) of 15 feet, 10 inches, and is equipped with a manual chain hoist.
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Impact
The Spanco Gantry Crane has made it easy for the Life Flight maintenance team to keep the helicopters properly maintained. The five-ton capacity allows the workers to lift the helicopters as needed without difficulty. This function, and the cost savings provided by purchasing the crane instead of renting one long-term, have been the main benefits provided by the Spanco Gantry Crane.
The portable design of the gantry crane also provides more benefits. Because it can be moved to any location within the facility, the Spanco Gantry Crane can provide additional lifting capability when two helicopters need work at the same time. Workers have used it to lift engines or gearboxes while the other crane was occupied. Workers can also roll the gantry crane out of the way when it is not in use, keeping the floorspace in the facility free. Also, although it isn’t necessary for the crane’s primary purpose, the ability to move the Spano Gantry Crane under load has come in handy for some tasks.
Overall, the Spanco crane has been very beneficial for the Life Flight maintenance department. Jeff explained that Cordell has provided excellent service from installation to periodic inspections, and the Spanco A-Series Gantry Crane is well-built and works very well. Thanks to Cordell and the Spanco crane, the workers are well-equipped to handle all of the maintenance tasks at the hangar.