Massive Trailer for Stockton Alliance
One of the biggest trailers built in New Zealand will soon go to work for the Stockton Alliance shifting heavy machinery, including 192 tonne excavators, at the Stockton opencast coalmine, near Westport.
The off-highway transporter will be hauled throughout the mine by a Caterpillar 777D dump-truck with its tipper body replaced by a fifth wheel. Its primary role will be to transport 192 and 70 tonne excavators to different worksites and to the onsite workshops as required.
The 40 wheeler trailer features key systems supplied by Gough Group members’ Gough Transpecs and Gough TWL. This includes 10 SAF drum braked axles from their heavy-duty range, leaf suspensions and Wabco braking system.
The trailer unit compliments Gough Cat's contract to supply 95 pieces of Caterpillar machinery, worth $120 million, to Solid Energy’s Stockton opencast coking coal mine. This contract comprises 58 trucks, 19 excavators, five tracked and three wheeled bulldozers, seven wheel-loaders and three motor-graders.
Manufactured by Pahiatua trailer manufacturer Jackson Enterprises the off-highway transporter weighs in at 70 tonne and is 6 metres wide and 22 metres long. The intensive six month design and build project involved up to 11 of the company’s staff at any one time.
Jackson Enterprises founder and co-owner Trevor Jackson says that the huge heavy-duty transporter “is actually so simple”.
The 40 wheels are suspended on a Jackson-built hydraulic system, with the trailer deck height at 1.35, and the gooseneck at 3.8m. The bare trailer’s tare weight is 53t, but twin hydraulic ramps and hardwood decking take that out to 72t.
The massive task of moving the transporter from its location at Gough's in Christchurch will be undertaken in mid February. The transporter unit will be hauled on-road by a 70 tonne capacity low loader via the Lewis Pass. It will require two tractor units to pull the transporter up the Middleton Track, the access road up to the mine.
The permitted load for this unique transport project is 29 metres long by 6.5 metres wide by 4.6 metres high.
The overall trip will be done in stages and is expected to take three days rather than the normal 4.5 hours by car. As another comparison, the travel time for the majority of the Caterpillar equipment supplied in the contract has been 6-7 hours via transporter from Christchurch to the mine site.