Irrigation: flexible and space-saving

Profile

• What was needed: Plastic energy chains
• Requirements: the height-adjustable spraying system requires particularly flexible cable guidance. It must also be possible to install this in particularly confined spaces.
• Industry: agriculture
• Success for the customer: the plastic energy chains allow maximum flexibility in the application and safely guide all the required power cables and hoses. The system works in the smallest of spaces.

Problem

Rutec Engineering bv develops and builds machines and production lines for a wide range of industries. This includes a system for spraying flowers in greenhouses. The so-called spray bars were attached to the heating pipes hanging above the flowers. The installation can be moved back and forth, whereby the spray nozzles must also be able to move up and down to achieve optimum spraying results. Reliable cable guidance was required for the lifting system of the entire construction. It was important for the solution to flexibly accommodate the height adjustment, and to fit into particularly confined spaces between the flowers and heating pipes.

Solution

The solution from Rutec Engineering provides two cable connections that serve as extendable and retractable telescopic elements. They are retracted with a winch and pull the construction upwards with the spray nozzles. The system is also lowered by rolling out the winch. The advantage of this mechanism is that no additional height is required above the spray boom. The arms simply "bend" from the vertical to the horizontal level. This design is made possible, among other things, by the particularly flexible plastic energy chains. They reliably follow the lifting movements and safely guide all power cables and hoses. They also ensure cable guidance in particularly confined spaces in the installation.