The Cat 583R Pipelayer has a rear face similar to
Cat D8R, to allow for easy mounting of the W12E Allied towing winch.
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You know the old expression, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." Well, the tough old Allied towing winch is now taking on new challenges in some of the world's most demanding environments.
With the rise in oil prices, pipeline activity has increased rapidly throughout the world. As oil exploration locates new sources for oil in ever more remote locations, pipelines have to be built to move the oil to port for transport to refineries. The Allied winch is playing a small but important part in meeting the global demand for oil.
The latest major project is the Chad-Cam Pipeline project. This pipeline transports crude oil from Chad in the center of Africa, to the port of Kribi on the west coast of Cameroon, just above the equator in Africa. It runs nearly 700 miles through hot desert, rugged mountains, and lowland swamp. Keeping equipment moving is where the Allied winch comes in.
Pipeline contractors will be using Cat 583R pipelayers, the industry workhorse, to place lengths of pipe. The Cat 583R undercarriage supports a boom, draw works and hydraulic winch for raising and lowering pipe into the trench. The Allied W12E winch is mounted on the rear of the 583R, like a dozer winch, to give it self-rescue capability in the harsh conditions in Africa.
The big advantage of the W12E winch is that it is driven by the tractor PTO shaft. The winch is able to deliver close to 100 percent of engine horsepower to the towing cable. This provides both large pulling forces and high line speed, to enhance productivity. A hydraulic winch could have been used, but would have had limited line pull and line speed because it uses the ripper circuit, which provides only partial engine horsepower.
Click here to see some basic specifications for the Caterpillar 583 tractor and the Allied W12E winch.
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Caterpillar dealer Mustang Tractor of Houston, Texas has ordered W12E winches to mount on a fleet of Cat 583R pipelayers destined for Cameroon. Allied engineer Richard Hobbs traveled to Mustang in May to ensure a smooth installation on the first mounting. Roger Dolejsi, Mustang's Shop Foreman, was close at hand with all the technical support needed for a first-class result. The units will ship to Africa in the summer and will go into service later this year.
On the same project, Caterpillar dealer Tractafric, in Douala, Cameroon, has ordered a large quantity of towing winches for Cat D6R, D7R and D8R dozers. These dozers will be handling the tough job of site preparation in the extreme conditions. The Allied winch will help keep the fleet moving all the time.
Tractafric has years of experience with the Allied W6F and W8L winches in forestry applications in equatorial Africa. They know its solid, trouble-free design will get them through the tough going on pipeline projects as well.
Oil and gas business is active in other parts of the world. In North America, winch sales are running very strong in Texas and Oklahoma, along the Gulf of Mexico, and in Pennsylvania. Smart dealers are enhancing their bottom line every day by selling winches into the oil patch.
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