Drum handling
Pick up, transport, tip and dose drums from 60 to 200 litres – upright or lying.
Industry
ATEX manipulators for chemicals and pharmaceuticals
In potentially explosive atmospheres it is not the payload that decides but the approval. Our units are available in an explosion-protected version for the zones your explosion protection document defines – with the same grippers and the same sensitivity as in a standard area.
- Drum sizes in the standard gripper
- 200 l
- Payload incl. gripper
- 125 kg
- Ignition sources in the zone
- 0
01 — Applications
Where standard units are not allowed in.
Typical handling tasks in Chemicals & pharma — and what they demand technically.
Canisters and containers
Guide canisters from the pallet into the batch vessel without anyone carrying them.
Vessel and agitator handling
Move batch vessels, agitator elements and screens inside cleanrooms or classified zones.
Sack feeding to the reactor
Guide powder sacks to the charging port in the right orientation and cut them open – without a dust cloud at the operator.
IBC handling
Present, position and set down IBC containers securely.
Filter and plant components
Lift and hold filter candles, lids and plant parts during maintenance and cleaning.
02 — What matters
What Chemicals & pharma demands of handling technology
Zone first, unit second
Selection does not begin with the weight but with the explosion protection document. It states which areas are classified as zone 0, 1 or 2 – or 20, 21 or 22 for dusts. The zone determines the equipment category under Directive 2014/34/EU, the medium determines the temperature class and the explosion group. Only then do we talk about payload and reach. Reverse that order and you order twice.
Why the drum is the most common task
A 200-litre drum weighs up to 250 kilograms when full, stands on a pallet and often has to be tipped above head height. There is hardly a handling task that leads to back injuries so regularly – and hardly one that is so easy to solve. A drum gripper on a manipulator takes the drum at the rim or bung, lifts it, rotates it under control and holds the tipping angle while dosing.
Resistance is a question of the medium, not the industry
Solvents, alkalis, acids and coatings attack different materials. For the design we need the safety data sheets of every medium the unit may contact – they determine seal material, coating and hose material. That, too, belongs in the enquiry, not in the commissioning.
Pneumatic where electric is not allowed
In many zones the pneumatic version is the simpler route: no electric drive in the field, no ignition source of its own, static charge dissipated through conductive components. Where electric operation is required we supply in the protection type approved for the zone. Which version fits is decided by the zone – and by whether compressed air of sufficient quality is available.
03 — Device catalogue
Start the device finder
Equipment for Chemicals & pharma
Design, payload and reach — the shortlist for this industry.
Lifting equipment · Balancers
01
Skyline Rope Balancer
Weightless handling – floating instead of lifting.
View device
Lifting equipment · Manipulators
02
Articulated Arm Hoist
The jointed arm for millimetre-precise handling.
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Lifting equipment · Crane systems
03
Slewing Crane Rope Unit
Wide reach by slewing around the column.
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Lifting equipment · Mobile
04
Elbow Mobile
The articulated arm that comes to the load.
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04 — Services
From analysis to inspection
01
Sizing & Custom Solutions
Load, reach, cycle time – plus grippers for anything without a catalogue entry.
View
02
Safety Devices
Sizing of safety valves and rupture discs – the last link in the safety chain.
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03
Lifting Technology
Lifting equipment, manipulators and balancers for industry, medical technology and logistics.
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04
Statutory Inspections
Recurring inspection of your equipment to German accident prevention regulations.
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05 — Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions from Chemicals & pharma
Which ATEX zones do your units cover?
We supply versions for gas and dust zones. Which equipment category you need follows from your explosion protection document: zones 1 and 2, or 21 and 22, are the normal case in production; zones 0 and 20 usually apply only inside vessels. Give us the zone, temperature class and explosion group and we design accordingly.
Pneumatic or electric – what is right in a hazardous area?
Pneumatic is the simpler route in many zones because the drive itself is not an ignition source and static charge is dissipated through conductive components. Electric is possible too, then in the protection type approved for the zone. The decision depends on the zone and on whether compressed air of sufficient quality is available.
Can you dose drums as well?
Yes. The drum gripper holds the tipping angle so that decanting can be controlled. On request with an integrated scale so the quantity removed is recorded directly in the process.
What do you need for a firm quotation?
Zone and temperature class from the explosion protection document, the safety data sheets of the media, container type and weight, plus a photo or sketch of the station. With that the quotation needs no round of queries.
06 — Applications
Tasks from this industry
Application
Moving drums in hazardous areas
The zone is in the document. The equipment follows from it.
Read the case ApplicationMoving and standing up gas cylinders
The cylinder does not fall while being lifted. It falls while being tipped.
Read the case ApplicationChanging pumps and valves in maintenance
There is no crane above the pump. There is a pipe rack.
Read the case
07 — Guides
Read more
Contact
We do not know your shop floor yet — but we know the task.
One short conversation usually settles more than three quotations. Call or write — you will reach an engineer directly.