Helicopter Operator Replaces
$3,600/hr Flying Time with a Portable Gantry.
A helicopter operator supporting a remote James Bay mine site faced a choice: keep paying $3,600 per hour for helicopter sling-load operations, or air-freight a portable aluminum gantry to the camp and let three mechanics do the rigging on the ground. They picked the gantry. Operated at −40 °C, the eme 6600R unloaded Caterpillar tractors from a freighter, staged parts onto sleds for tundra transport, and stayed in service for ongoing drill-bit changes and equipment maintenance throughout the season.
- ASME B30.17 Cranes and Monorails
- CSA B167 Overhead Travelling Cranes
- Aluminum Design Manual (ADM) US aluminum structural design
- CSA S157 Strength Design in Aluminum
OSHA requires a crane to be proof-load tested to 125% of rated capacity before it is placed into service — an obligation on the employer putting the crane to work. eme completes that proof test on every gantry as part of its quality-control process, so each one ships with applicable product documentation: engineer-stamped drawing, Certificate of Test at 125% of rated capacity, and welding performed under CSA W47.2 certification by qualified aluminum welders. The 6600R deployed on this project shipped with the same documentation set — pre-service proof test already done — as every other 6600R in the field.
- Industry
- Aviation / Mining
- Application
- Mine-site rigging · Caterpillar tractor unloading · Drill rig assembly
- Equipment
- eme 6600R Aluminum Gantry Crane
- Setup Crew
- Three mechanics · field-assembled
- Conditions
- Remote James Bay mine camp · operated at −40 °C
- Result
- Replaced helicopter flying time billed at $3,600/hr · two Cats assembled in one week
Moving Caterpillar Tractors and Drill Rigs Onto Remote Tundra.
The helicopter operator was supporting a mine site on James Bay — fly-in only, no roads, no permanent infrastructure beyond what was air-freighted in. The mine needed Caterpillar tractors and a drill rig delivered, assembled, and kept operational through the season. Without a permanent crane on-site, every heavy lift had to be either solved with helicopter sling-load operations or with portable equipment that could be flown in and assembled in the field.
Helicopter Flying Time Was Costing $3,600 per Hour.
Helicopter sling-load work for the heavy assembly lifts was billing at $3,600 per hour of flying time. The operator needed an alternative that could handle the same lifting profile on the ground — unloading tractors from a freighter, positioning parts onto sleds for tundra transport, assisting with Cat assembly, and staying in service for downstream drill-bit changes and equipment maintenance throughout the camp's operating season. The constraint wasn't just cost: any equipment shipped in had to operate at −40 °C, assemble without specialized riggers on hand, and fit within a single air-freight payload.
A 6600R Aluminum Gantry, Air-Freighted In, Assembled On-Site by Three Mechanics.
The operator air-freighted an eme 6600R portable aluminum gantry crane — 3-tonne capacity, ground-up assembly with a small crew, no specialty tools beyond the wrenches that travel with the unit. On arrival at the mine camp, three mechanics assembled the crane and put it to work immediately:
- Removed the Caterpillar tractors from the freighter shipping configuration.
- Positioned tractor components onto sleds for tundra transport between the camp and the work face.
- Assisted with Cat assembly on-site, working under load at full −40 °C conditions.
- Stayed in continuous service for drill-bit changes and routine equipment servicing throughout the rest of the season.
The 6600R's structural aluminum architecture handled the extreme-cold operating envelope; the modular setup let three mechanics do the rigging work normally reserved for a helicopter pilot + ground crew flying expensive load cycles.
Air-Freight Mobile. Cold-Tolerant. Reusable Across the Season.
- Replaced billable helicopter time with portable ground rigging. The recurring cost of $3,600/hr flying time was substituted with a one-time capital purchase that stayed in service all season.
- Three-mechanic assembly in the field. The 6600R doesn't need a specialty rigging crew — three of the camp's existing mechanics handled the build with the wrenches that ship with the crane.
- Performed in −40 °C field conditions. The structural-aluminum architecture handled the extreme operating temperature without the specialized cold-rated specs steel cranes typically require.
- Two Caterpillar tractors assembled in one week. The gantry served the full Cat unload-to-assemble cycle on a one-week timeline, including ground-side load positioning onto sleds.
- Stayed useful after the initial job. The crane wasn't a one-trip purchase — it stayed in continuous service for drill-bit changes and ongoing equipment maintenance throughout the rest of the season.
Got a remote-site, cold-weather, or air-freight-only lift?
Tell us the load, the staging constraint, the operating temperature, and how the equipment gets to site. We'll spec a portable configuration that survives the trip and earns its keep once it lands.