Equipment Report

The U.S. Steel Gary Works location of Tube City Inc. has taken delivery of a Sennebogen 870 wheeled scrap handler. The machine is the largest sold into the U.S. market so far for the German mobile material handling equipment maker.

The hydraulic scrap handler was sold through the Crane & Machinery Inc. dealership in Bridgeview, Ill., now an authorized distributor of Sennebogen equipment through its Sennebogen LLC master dealership, based in Charlotte, N.C.

At the Tube City Gary Works site, in Gary, Ind., the machine will help handle the 200,000 to 250,000 tons per month of ferrous scrap that move through the staging area located near U.S. Steel’s blast furnaces.

David Coslov, vice president of maintenance/equipment for Tube City Inc., King of Prussia, Pa., says he was impressed by the machine’s durability and the simplicity of its design. "I think there is a difference between a standard scrap yard and an industrial application such as ours," he says, adding the Tube City Gary site runs around the clock to service the surrounding furnaces.

Coslov says he favors the simpler electronic controls and other design considerations that resulted from meetings between representatives from Tube City and Sennebogen. For example, Coslov remarks the electrical systems of some machines "are too technical and complex for the scrap environment they operate in. It causes more problems than it solves."

Regarding the Sennebogen approach, Coslov says, "We were able to visit them and discuss issues we’ve had with other material handlers. Erich Sennebogen and his group of engineers were able to address our design issues."

Erich Sennebogen, managing director of the Straubing, Germany-based company, visited Gary to take part in a ceremony formally delivering the new machine to Tube City. "Tube City is a very important customer for our company. Tube City took a risk, but had the vision to order the first Senne-bogen 870 wheeled machines in the U.S," he remarked at the late August ceremony.

Michael Pregont, president of Crane & Machinery Inc., says he and his sales force are looking forward to their new affiliation with the German material handling company. "We looked for a long time for a product we could represent to go against our major competitors. The Senne-bogen Green Line is what we’ve been looking for."

Richard Centner, executive vice president of Sennebogen LLC, is lining up additional distributors for the material handling line and its 21 models. The company has reached agreements with six distributors but has additional territories available, says Centner.

"Our philosophy is to make very tough machines. Material handling machines in applications like this work at full stress. There is no easy part of the job," states Erich Sennebogen.