ALE was awarded the replacement of six coke drums at Valero Refinery in Port Arthur, Houston. This involved the disassembly and assembly of a 1,400te superstructure in a single piece.
The AL.SK190 was used to exchange the coker drums, removing six old drums and replacing with six new drums weighing up to 471te each. The crane first lifted a 1,400t derrick structure, which was positioned on top of the existing coker drums at a height of 100 metres, and set it on the ground. The coker drums were then exchanged, and the derrick structure replaced. The derrick lift performed by the AL.SK190 was the first time a complete derrick assembly consisting of triple drill towers and cutting deck had been removed and replaced in a single piece. The lift required a complex tackle arrangement with a 12-point pick up only possible with the AL.SK190 crane. The AL.SK190 was rigged outside the boundaries of the coker pit to successfully complete the assembly without the need to shut down the coker. This also enabled the completion of the project with no permanent equipment in the refinery having to be dismantled, and the coke pit wall did not have to be removed.
