A lift table uses a mechanism to lift or lower equipment or people. Lift table systems can raise heavy equipment and supplies, including individual parts or pallets, along with workers or vehicles. Because of their versatility and reliable design, platform lifts and lift tables see frequent usage in various processes across the aerospace sector. Typical examples may include preventive aircraft maintenance and the placement of different aircraft components during assembly.
The Purpose of Lift Tables in Aerospace Applications
Work platform lifts offer numerous benefits for aerospace operations. Some of these advantages include:
Reduced risk of injury. Many workplace injuries in the aerospace sector involve repetitive motion, overexertion, and bending. Lift tables reduce these injuries by enabling workers to easily position or preposition during various tasks, preventing strain that might otherwise result in long-term harm.
Improved maintenance. Ladders are often unstable, making it difficult or unsafe to perform maintenance on large aircraft. Table lifts allow workers to safely and effectively reach every aircraft area to perform necessary maintenance.
Simplified installation of aircraft parts. Engines and other aircraft components require precision for proper installation. Table and platform lifts help to move components accurately and quickly into place for proper installation.
Lifting and Handling Solutions for the Aerospace Industry
There are multiple types of lifts available for aerospace applications. Each lift type may perform different functions based on the application’s specific needs.
Jet Engine Test Cell Lifts
Engineers rely on jet engine test cell lifts when conducting functionality and performance tests on jet engines. These lifts feature two hydraulic-actuated, floor-mounted lifts that support the main platform. The design also features removable guard rails that keep workers secure while using the platform while simplifying access during loading or unloading of workers and testing equipment.
High Travel Work Platform Lifts
Built for frequent use, these lifts feature a high weight capacity for carrying workers and aircraft parts for repairs. They are designed with durability and safety to protect workers while frequently accommodating heavy equipment and multiple personnel.
Lightweight Personnel Work Platforms
Lightweight personnel platform lifts provide an ideal lifting solution in facilities with limited loads. Engineers design these lifts to fit through doorways, and some available models will fit into elevators. Lightweight personnel work platforms typically hold one or two workers at a time, allowing them to access hard-to-reach aircraft areas for cleaning and maintenance work or assembly.
Jet Engine Assembly Lifts
This type of engine table lift holds jet engines in place during the assembly process. The lift mounts to the floor for stability, allowing technicians to adjust the engine height reliably during placement operations, and rotate on the z-axis.
Aerospace Lifts From Unidex
Whether you need a lift to hold a single maintenance worker or an assembly lift for accurate and precise component installation, Unidex offers lifting solutions for every aerospace requirement. To see how lift tables from Unidex will benefit your aerospace operation, please contact us today.
How EH Positioning Systems Power the Aerospace Industry
Every industry is feeling the crunch to be more efficient, but perhaps none are more stringent than the aerospace sector. Aerospace companies need to be able to easily access and store thousand of unique parts, each type with wildly different dimensions and storage condition demands.
Static storage and pick shelving are basic solutions, but they take up a lot of space. More complex systems like AS/RS systems, carousels, and gravity flow picking racks are more efficient. Aerospace facilities need material handling and storage solutions that can enable the movement of heavy and high-frequency parts while also being able to handle a wide variety of sizes for tubing, plates, sheet metal, and channels.
Advantages for Improved Efficiency and Productivity
Investing in better equipment handling systems doesn’t just save companies on square footage. Smart solutions also reduce the risk of workplace injuries by automating many lifting and handling tasks. These systems include material handling equipment, portable lifts, and any other equipment used to lift or move materials and inventory.
With more advanced material handling solutions in place, personnel can easily access vertical and lateral storage spaces and use machinery to move the actual equipment to its destination. Reducing workplace accidents increases employee productivity, reduces turnover, and also reduces the costs of paying for medical fees and temporary staff. It also lets people work faster throughout the entire day.
Adding positioning tools to the system further increases its efficiency. These solutions allow workers to rotate airplane subassemblies, move them, and easily assemble or inspect the parts.
Three key benefits of positioning systems specifically include:
Consistent quality. Automated positioning machinery enables accurate, precise, and consistent movements. This ensures that the resulting assemblies and product placements are also accurate.
Increased efficiency. With automated equipment, setup and positioning are faster. It also requires fewer trips to storage shelves to gather all of the necessary components for each assembly. EH systems create even more efficiency because they reduce the amount of direct labor per assembly.
Work flexibility. Smart automated equipment can be trained and retrained on more than one task. It requires less lead time between function changes and can handle more discrete projects or assemblies.
Common Applications
The aerospace industry has unique demands that must be considered when sourcing material handling and lifting equipment. These demands include the size of very large and heavy aircraft components, the weight of assembled parts like jet engines, and the complexity of electronic configurations. Some of the most common applications of specialized EH positioning systems include:
Equipment to carry jet engines from storage to test cells, such as high-travel lifts and heavy-duty ram lifts
Lifting, inspecting, and working on large components
Lifts that provide cantilevered work platforms along fuselages
Lightweight lifts for manual positioning
Platform lifts to position jet engines in recessed pits for inspections and work
Portable hydraulic lifts that give workers access to various vertical points along jet fuselages
Portable hydraulic tables to carry satellites between storage and launch sites
Custom Aerospace Solutions from Unidex
EH positioning systems give personnel in aerospace facilities greater positioning and flexibility to handle complex assembly tasks. These systems can help workers operate on and near heavy and large machinery with reduced risks for injury. They also allow facilities to run more efficiently, have faster tool setup, and have more high-quality, precise arrangements.
Unidex specializes in providing material handling systems and equipment for manufacturers in a variety of challenging industries across North America. Since 1989, our company has concentrated on creating customized material handling solutions that meet unique challenges. We prioritize an engineer-to-order system that gives companies design options, custom features, and unique material handling functions that best fit the intended application.
Contact us today to learn more about our material handling systems and positioning systems for aerospace industries.
Unidex Inc. 2416 State Route 19N, Warsaw, NY 14569
