Press Release

Ref: PRCSH95 Date: 23^rdMay 2016

Cooper secures landmark contract with Belfast Harbour

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Cooper Specialised Handling, the UK's only independent and dedicated provider of specialised heavy lifting equipment, has secured the contract for what is understood to be the largest crane of its type in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The Mantsinen 160M hydraulic crane is scheduled for delivery to Belfast Harbour, in the late summer of this year.

Belfast Harbour is a premier gateway to Ireland. Each year it handles liquid, dry and break bulk, as well as containers with tonnages approaching 25million, equating to around 70% of Northern Ireland's maritime trade and 20% of that for the entire island of Ireland.

Mantsinen's 160M machine is a wheeled hydraulic crane specified to service vessels visiting Belfast. These range from 4,000-15,000dwt and handle a variety of products, but chiefly coal, scrap, grain and refuse-derived fuel. Consequently, the crane will be supplied with the Mantsinen MC620 quick change coupling device so that attachments can be interchanged in a matter of minutes.

The crane is equipped with a 17.5 metre curved boom and 15 metre stick offering 31 metre horizontal outreach and a capacity of in excess of 10 tonnes at 27 metre extension. It also benefits from the Mantsinen patented cab riser, which can extend 9 metres horizontally from the slew-ring centre to provide optimum visibility into the vessel hold.

In an unprecedented move, the machine has been specified with a 5-axle (20-wheel) undercarriage - more typically seen on the larger Mantsinen 200 crane - to meet Belfast Harbour's requirement to reduce the individual wheel loadings.

With an overall weight of 234 tonnes, this machine is believed to be the largest hydraulic crane or material handler supplied anywhere in the UK and Ireland.

Commenting on the deal, a spokesperson from Belfast Harbour's Operations Engineering Department said: "The overall engineering content of the Mantsinen crane and the solutions Cooper provided to meet our specific needs were the most important factors in the decision-making process. We look forward to the crane complementing our quayside capabilities."

Cooper Specialised Handling Director David Cooper added: "We are delighted to have secured this important new business, which sees a high profile end user opting for the capability to load more while using less energy.

"The synergies between Cooper and Mantsinen, and our commitment to working in partnership to deliver cost-effective solutions to challenging handling issues, really came to the fore with this project."

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Editor's Notes

Cooper Handling Group operates in all sectors of lifting and materials handling across the UK and Ireland. Cooper Specialised Handling is its heavy handling division and is the exclusive UK distributor for Sany equipment, sole importer and distributor for Mantsinen cranes and a specialist in Konecranes lift trucks. The company has a specialist aftersales division, Cooper Handling Solutions, while Cooper Materials Handling specialises in industrial forklift trucks and is the UK distributor for the Maximal brand. Independently owned, Cooper offers total solutions for forklifts from 6 to 60 metric tonnes and a complete range of hydraulic cranes for solid and bulk handling. It provides high quality, high value products and reliable service to customers who operate in the toughest sectors across freight, ports, inter-modal terminals and other heavy lifting industries, together with a broad range of industrial materials handling applications from manufacturing to distribution.

View this release on the Cooper media centre:

Caption: Cooper Specialised Handling is supplying Belfast Harbour what is understood to be the largest crane of its type in the UK and Ireland.

Media contact:

Martine Layland

CHANGEWORKS Communications Limited
t: + 44 (0) 1785 247588
e: mlayland@changeworkscom.co.uk

Company contact:

Natasha Barnes

Business Development Manager

Cooper SH Limited
Holly Farm Business Park
Honiley
Kenilworth
Warwickshire
CV8 1NP
United Kingdom

Tel: 01926 658900
email:natasha@cooperhandling.com

W:www.cooperhandling.com