Ticking the green boxes

Verstegen’s environmentally friendly grabs boast enclosed scales and rubber flaps that cover the top side of the scales. The scales mean that the wind cannot get at dusty material, and similarly, the flaps also considerably reduce the risk of dust emission.

Konecranes have also taken the environmental issues on board with its range of AGD grab unloaders. These unloaders not only allow for high performance, but they include various special features to reduce the levels of dust pollution, such as systems for dust extraction and dust suppression.

In the last couple of years, the Konecranes AGD grab unloaders have proven to be hugely popular, with demands from all over the globe – from Bristol to Hamburg and from Australia to Denmark.

Optional dust guards are also included in SMAG crane grabs. Germany-based SMAG (Salzgitter Maschinenbau AG) is a prime mover in the sector, developing and making different sorts of grabs for all sorts of requirement. SMAG offers a number of different products including the Hydraulic Orange Peel Grab, the Motor Dual Scoop Grab (which is a good first port of call for handling fine-grained bulk cargo), the Hydraulic Dual Scoop Grab (a great option for a mobile excavator) and the Radio Controlled Single Rope Grab, which is good for any general cargo crane.

The remote control of this latter grab is a particular boon. It can interrupt and continue the opening process many times in a simple, fuss-free fashion – in order to avert unintentional opening, the frequencies on individual remote controls are specially encoded. It’s reliable and can be used on a constant basis, thanks to high-power rechargeable batteries with high charge capacity.