Gigantic elevator for the world’s biggest ship

The first ever floating gas factory by Shell, SHELL PRELUDE, is an anchored ship off the Australian coast that  gas from the sea, cleans it, stores it and liquefies it for transport. The ship is 480 meter long, 70 meter wide and about 75 meter high. It produces at least 5.3 million tonnes per annum of liquids. A ship with these dimensions requests an elevator of course. The elevator is able to carry ten tons or 124 people over a distance of 30 meters. This was a long-term project: Six months of planning, three months of designing and two months for building. The technical challenge: The elevator has to transport a very large load perfectly, even in the roughest of seas. The cabin weighs 8.5 tons, is 3.7 meters wide inside, 4.4 meters long and 2.4 meters high. Outside, it measures 4.7 by 4.6 meters with a height of 4.8 meters. It can carry 10,000 kilogramm over 5 stops at a speed of 0.3 meters per second. It has manual swing doors that are 22.1meters wide. The production was accompanied by very extensive quality management. Only certified material was allowed, and proof of this is required. The electric unit that powers the elevator has an output of 60 horse powers. That is comparable to a Skoda Fabia. It is placed above behind the shaft.