Solid Stone Granite Countertops – moving to a larger facility

Solid Stone is a family-run business with decades of real stone countertop experience. Their primary mission is to assist their customers in choosing the perfect stone to fit their needs and deliver world class installation and delivery service.

The CHALLENGE

Solid Stone’s growing operation necessitated a move to a larger facility. With a larger facility came the need for a different crane setup. With two workstation cranes at the previous location they needed a solution that would minimize downtime and re-use as much of their exisiting equipment as possible.

The SOLUTIONS

Partnering again with Acculift, Solid Stone worked with our staff. Utilizing the modular nature of our lifting solutions, almost all of the equipment from the previous location could be re-used. With minimal new equipment, we were able to combine equipment into a single lifting solution that would provide complete coverage for their slab cutting area of their new facility. With careful planning, Acculift was able to disassemble the existing equipment in one day, move it to the new location, and reassemble a larger system at the new location in two days. The new lifting solution utilized both bridges and hoists from the previous solutions – both bridges can travel the length of the workstation to handle production as needed, where needed, with the specific handling solutions for the task at hand.

Specifications:

Maximum capacity 2000lbs,
Two Bridges,
Stone clamp and vacuum end effectors,
Tilt, rotate, and lift with on/off capabilities for each repositionable vacuum pad,
94’6″ X 30’4″ crane coverage,
Eight Posts.

On one bridge, they have a clamping end effector that is used to quickly move the large heavy pieces throughout the facility. On the other bridge, is a four pad vacuum lifter. With rotate and tilt capabilities, the four pads can be turned on or off as needed to precisely lift and position cut pieces, whole sheets of stone, and L shaped pieces as well. The precision of this end-effector allows Solid Stone personnel to place the stone exactly where it needs to be for cutting and processing and then move it around the location minimizing the chance for product damage and breakage. With stone sheets weighing up to 2000 lbs, a safe method of handling has always been the number one feature of their material handling needs.

The RESULT

Solid Stone was able to save considerable capital investment by re-using their existing equipment. The crane coverage matches the new location and provides safe ways to handle heavy sheets of stone in both a fast and precise manner as needed. With a lifting solution that matches their streamlined process flow they are able to speed production while maintaining their high standards of employee safety.

Acculift was able to reuse our existing equipment and put together a solution that provided complete coverage of our new facility with two bridges and hoist on the same workstation.

Tim Seimens, General Manager