Ace Installs Overhead Crane at Automotive Facility

Ace World Companies has installed a 40 ton capacity overhead crane with 20 ton auxiliary hoist at automotive manufacturer Nissan’s facility in Canton, Mississippi.

The 116-foot span crane replaces an older unit which has been in operation since the facility was built. The opening of the iconic Nissan Canton vehicle assembly plant in 2003 was a groundbreaking moment, bringing automotive production to Mississippi for the first time.

The crane will be used for loading and unloading dies for Nissan Canton’s stamping presses. It will also be used to flip the dies when they are being repaired. Blank steel sheets go through one of three massive stamping presses where they become body panels, such as hoods, fenders, doors and body sides. The stamping presses tower 36 feet above the plant floor, more than 20 feet below the floor and yield up to 6,000 tons of force.

Kevin Beavers, operations manager, Knoxville division, at Ace World Companies, said: “The overhead crane is crucial to the production line. Every car, truck and van produced at the facility starts as a coil of raw steel. The steel is rolled out and travels through a press, where it is then cut into blank sheets. As formed panels exit the presses, technicians inspect them to ensure quality, before placing them in storage racks. Ace’s lifting equipment is integral to the safety and efficiency of this production process.”

The Canton team has been assembling quality, award-winning cars, trucks, crossovers and SUVs for over a decade, during which time the plant has grown significantly and transformed from a domestic manufacturer to one supplying automobiles to a global audience. The plant has become a force for economic development, creating thousands of well-paying jobs and inspiring other auto companies and suppliers to set up operations in the state.

Nissan sold its first automobile in the U.S. in 1958, with U.S. manufacturing beginning in June 1983 as a white Nissan pickup truck rolled off the assembly line.

Beavers added: “We are extremely proud not only of this installation but of the part we have played in the lifecycle of this particular manufacturer and our reputation for providing industry-leading lifting solutions to the automotive sector. We have supplied a variety of cranes and hoists for the industry over the years. An automated system incorporating 22 hoists that worked in conjunction to dip frames into various tanks was another that will live long in the memory.”

Ace World Companies has two divisions, one providing custom-built overhead cranes and a second that supplies standard products to distributors and end users from its Advantage Hoist range. New websites were recently launched for both at www.aceworldcompanies.com and www.advantagehoist.com respectively.