An ageing straddle fleet generating increased maintenance labour and costs led the organisation to invest in 16 new Diesel-Electric Konecrane Noell straddles over a three-year project. An extensive design and requirement phase was undertaken including a new digital design to connect on-board equipment with existing applications and systems. During the digital design the business strategically chose to include cellular connectivity creating redundancy and opportunity as we move into an age of IoT. The Noell Straddle – Technology Installation work was a pivotal piece of work for large plant connectivity.

I led a digital team of internal and external resources to extensively detail and plan the delivery of the digital design, procure new hardware, configure, test, install and commission all digital elements of the project. The digital team stretched across New Zealand and included Australia & Germany who provided technical support during commissioning and go-live. The internal maintenance team provided valuable support during hardware installation and the new equipment provided an opportunity for those interested in the new equipment to learn.

The project was split into three tranches with eight new straddles in the first year and four each in tranches 2 & 3. The split in delivery allowed the project team to review and learn from the first tranche creating increased benefits and efficiency to the organisation.

All 16 straddles were delivered on time and under budget.

Challenges during the first tranche from WiFi issues were mitigated due to the quality design of secondary connectivity. This created an opportunity for the organisation to migrate to dual-cellular APN connections immediately. Performance was significantly increased on planned benefits and this decision later informed a fleet-wide migration of all large plant to cellular.

The organisations PMO delivered a tight project, yet saw high value in opportunities to deliver increased benefits as the project progressed. Collaboration between all areas of the business created a highly rewarding experience for all involved. Personally I found a new love and appreciation for large plant through this project.

Special thanks: Jonathon Deaker (Rubix), Jason  Hanson (LPC), Dan Barkley (LPC), Darren Henderson (Interlogic Ltd), Treyton Maddock & Bernard Alheit (CCL) and Raymond Smith (Identec Solutions Ltd)