Drive Lines Ltd. provides components used in the construction of portable workstations, also known as Crusers at Hayward Tyler, which are patent pending. The Crusers were named after the late Rob Cruse, who empowered Oliver Buhlinger, a young graduate to invent these solutions.The Crusers were developed by Buhlinger, a continuous improvement engineer with the aim of increasing the mobility of the movement of products weighing up to 40 tonnes to improve work flow efficiency and safety. Drive Lines Ltd. was initially a provider of screw jacks. Currently Drive Lines supply Hayward Tyler with couplings, gearboxes, cardan shafts, special combined bearings and profile rails used in the manufacture of the Crusers.

The HT Group (incorporating both the Hayward Tyler and Peter Brotherhood operating businesses) designs, manufactures, tests and services performance-critical electric motors, pumps, turbines and compressors to meet the most demanding of applications for the global energy industry. Much of this performance critical capital equipment operates under extreme conditions including nuclear, offshore and subsea environments. Hayward Tyler has redeveloped its Luton site into a world-class manufacturing, testing and assembly Center of Excellence.

To improve efficiency of the manufacturing process, the operations of the overhead cranes were studied. Studies revealed that a safe, more efficient and cheaper alternative to cranes was to transport and manufacture motors and pumps on portable work trolleys. This allows for units to be moved between assembly points with ease along production flowlines. Initial designs incorporated three variations of the trolley, each with on board equipment for specific duties. The components for the Crusers will be supplied by Drive Lines.

Buhlinger explains: “We were looking to redevelop the production floor of over 8,000 sqm, including the addition of a clean assembly and test extension area of over 2,500 sqm. Being able to start from a blank canvas, we were able to examine all options. To use overhead cranes and forklift trucks would be the conventional approach for moving heavy loads. However, due to the health and safety risks, crane utilization and ergonomic challenges, an alternative was sought. The key benefits of the Crusers include the elimination of fork lift trucks, reducing crane utilization by 50 percent to improve safety and significantly reducing manufacturing costs. The reduced crane utilization resulted in a cost avoidance exceeding half a million pounds.”

Screw jack systems, bogies and linear guides provided by Drive Lines are used to lift and tilt the stators, and motors whilst situated on the Cruser. The working platform of the stator can be moved vertically by 350 mm, allowing for the working height to be re-positioned. Combined bearings and rails supplied by Drive Lines allow for variable adjustment of the wheelbase ranging from lengths of less than a meter to that in excess of 5 meters.