Giant Trailer for Iranian Dam
Page 86

If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
WHAT is believed to be the U.S.A.'s ,T largest trailer has recently been shipped to Iran, where it will move 110-ton electric transformers and other heavy machinery inland from the port of Khorramshahr over some 170 miles of rugged mountain roads to a new hydro-electric dam on the Dez River.
Measuring 85 ft. in overall length and 10 ft. in width, the trailer, manufactured by Trailmobile, Inc., of Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.A., incorporates special features to cope with a variety of unusual operating conditions. Much of the road leading to the dam is under the control of the United Nations Geneva Convention, and axle loads are limited to 13 metric tons. Because of this, 10 axles and 40 tyres are employed to spread the load.
At the dam site, the trailer must back down a tunnel that 1;vinds for four miles in dropping 1,500 feet from a plateau to the underground powerhouse. This tunnel has a maximum ceiling height of 18 ft., and there is no turn-round at the end.
On account of these conditions, both the four-axle front bogie and the six
axle rear bogie are steerable, and each will be manned by an operator. The bogie operators will have three-way telephone contact with the driver.
The entire load-carrying centre section of the trailer can be hydraulically raised or lowered. It will be raised to vary ground clearances over obstructions on the road, and lowered to clear the ceiling of the tunnel, as well as to facilitate loading and unloading. This feature, in effect, makes the unit the largest equipment of this type ever controlled through three dimensions.