Lifting & handling
Pallet system
A jacking system turned on its side, moving very heavy loads horizontally, precisely, even in a seaway.
Our pallet system moves heavy loads along a track. It’s the same engineering as our jacking systems, laid on its side: a pallet runs on rail beams, and a hydraulic cylinder hauls it along by gripping the rail itself. There’s no rack, no chain and no separate drive train to wear out, the cylinder pushes and pulls itself along the rail, so the load moves with it. It’s how we reposition heavy loads to the millimetre, and it’s the same principle behind the mode-change system on our geotechnical marine drill range, where a pallet slides the tower between subsea drill, subsea CPT and seabed-frame deployment positions.
How it works
- Pallet on rail beams – the load sits on a pallet that slides on steel rail beams, with bogies or pads carrying the weight.
- Self-propelling cylinder – a hydraulic cylinder drives the pallet using a moving pin and a fixed pin that lock into holes (or pucks) along the rail in sequence: the fixed pin holds position while the cylinder resets, then the moving pin advances the pallet a stroke at a time. The cylinder effectively walks itself – and the load – along the rail.
- Pin-and-hole indexing – pins seat into lugs spaced along the rail, giving a positive, mechanically-held position at every step rather than relying on holding the load on pressure alone.
- Uplift protection & preload – the pallet is restrained against uplift and can be braced under hydraulic preload, so it stays controlled and the connection stays tight even with vessel motion in rough seas.
- Controlled, load-holding motion – close-coupled counterbalance valves give smooth, accurate travel and hold the load safely even on loss of hydraulic pressure or a hose failure; proportional, walkaround remote control.
- Marine-built – stainless construction and biodegradable hydraulic fluid for the offshore environment; structural design to recognised marine and structural codes.
One pallet, one cylinder, a track as long as you need it, add pallets and cylinders to carry more or move in two axes by running one track across another.
| Parameter | Typical scope |
|---|---|
| Load | ~30 t per pallet as standard (extensible with more pallets/cylinders, or a larger build to suit) |
| Drive | Self-propelling hydraulic cylinder, moving + fixed pin sequencing on a pin-and-hole / puck rail |
| Motion | Single-axis along the rail; XY by crossing tracks; millimetre positioning |
| Marine duty | Uplift protection & hydraulic preload for motion in a seaway; stainless build; load-holding on pressure loss |
| Control | Proportional walkaround remote; counterbalance load holding |
| Delivery | New-build · supply or design-only; configured to the load, track and environment |