Fairbanks Morse Engine to Refurbish Engines Damaged by Hurricane Katrina
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October 21st, 2005
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BELOIT, WI - Fairbanks Morse Engine has begun a project to disassemble, clean, inspect, reassemble, and retest four engines that incurred damage from Hurricane Katrina at the Ingalls Shipyard of Northrop Grumman Ship Systems located in Pascagoula, Mississippi. The PC 2.5 engines each rated at 10,400 hp are being used as main propulsion engines for ships under construction for the U.S. Navy.
The engines incurred water damage at the shipyard due to Hurricane Katrina and must be returned to the Fairbanks Morse plant in Beloit, Wisconsin to have the storm related damage repaired. Two engines have recently arrived at the Beloit plant—one on October 5 and the other on October 16, 2005. The third and fourth engines are expected to arrive during the next two weeks.
During the initial phase of the operation, Fairbanks Morse is disassembling and cleaning all four of the PC 2.5 engines over approximately a ten-week period. FME has a crew of about ten employees working on this project on a two-shift operation. All the parts are carefully inspected and undergo thorough engineering evaluation. After completion of the first phase of the operation, the engines will be reassembled and retested before they are shipped back to the shipyard. The schedule for the reassembly and retesting phase of the operation has not yet been determined, but it is likely to take a minimum of six months to complete all of the work and prepare the four engines for shipment back to the shipyard.
Normally, the engines would be shipped on a rail car. However, there is not adequate rail service because the hurricane washed out railroad tracks at the Mississippi location. Thus, due to the size and weight of the engines, they have to be shipped from Pascagoula, Mississippi to the factory in Beloit, Wisconsin by a very specialized truck and trailer system. Each PC 2.5 engine, weighing approximately 210,000 pounds or 105 tons, is 14 feet high, 13 feet wide and 30 feet long including its shipping platform.
The trucking firm shipping the engines is Interstate Heavy Haul Freight, Inc. located in Pell City, Alabama. The truck and trailer system is over 230 feet long and has a total of twenty-three axles. The transport system is comprised of two trucks, one at the front and one at the rear of the load, both providing power and steering capability to three separate trailers that are connected on pivots enabling it to make the tight turns required to maneuver the massive load. The total weight of the two trucks, three trailers, and loaded engine is approximately 480,000 pounds or 240 tons. The trucking firm is required to obtain special highway permits to transport the load through each of five states for the trip that takes seven-days. Local police escorts are required throughout Wisconsin and Illinois to satisfy highway safety requirements in those states.
After arrival at the Beloit factory, a heavy-duty crane and specialized rigging crew lifts the engine on to a Fairbanks Morse railcar that transports it to the assembly building. The firm performing the lifting operation is Area Rigging and Millwright Service, Inc. of Rockford, Illinois. The105 ton engine is lifted beyond fifteen feet in the air to clear the trailer and is then lowered to the rail car.
Related News: Beloit Daily News Article
Fairbanks Morse Engine, based in Beloit, Wisconsin, is a worldwide leader in diesel, dual fuel and natural gas engine technology and manufacturing. Primary markets include stationary and marine electric power generation, marine propulsion, locomotive traction, and other heavy industrial applications. For more information, please visit our website at www.fairbanksmorse.com .
EnPro Industries, Inc. (NYSE: NPO) is a leader in sealing products, metal polymer bearings, compressor systems, diesel engines and other engineered products for use in critical applications by industries worldwide. For information about EnPro, visit the Company's website, www.enproindustries.com .
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