We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • ::COVID-19 COVERAGE::
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Subscriptions
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Change Me
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • The Logistics of Defense
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC
    • Subscriptions
    • Podcast
    • Webcasts
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Change Me
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • The Logistics of Defense
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
Home » 2009: a material handling odyssey
inbound

2009: a material handling odyssey

August 1, 2009
Toby Gooley
No Comments

When NASA's Ares I-X flight-test rocket hurtles into space on Aug. 30, thrusters and rocket launchers will get all the credit. But photos of the preparations show that material handling equipment is also playing a critical role in getting the project off the ground.

Thousands of parts and components are now being staged near the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., and work has begun in the Vehicle Assembly Building, where overhead cranes are helping engineers stack the major pieces of the rocket. Photos of one large section arriving in a heavy-lift aircraft show forklifts on the runway, and reach trucks and scissor lifts can be seen in the background while technicians work on the massive space ship. (To see a slide show, go to www.nasa.gov and search for "Ares I-X photos." But be forewarned: The mesmerizing multimedia section of NASA's Web site will suck you in like a black hole, causing you to lose all track of time.)

One of the material handling companies helping to support the next generation of space exploration is Herkules Equipment Corp. The Walled Lake, Mich.-based manufacturer customized a three-lift system that's worthy of the company's name. The pneumatic lifts work independently to raise 2,400-pound parachutes to the top section of the booster rocket. The parachutes deploy during the first-stage separation shortly after lift-off, allowing the booster section to float back to earth. According to Herkules, the lifts were specially designed to comply with NASA's unique and strict requirements for raised height, travel, footprint, portability, reliability, and safety.

Material Handling Storage Internal Movement Vertical Lift Modules
  • Related Articles

    A Partnership and a Pledge: Toyota Material Handling Helps American Red Cross Carry the Load

    getting a handle on material handling

    I think … therefore I might be a material handling robot: interview with Ted Stinson

Contributing Editor Toby Gooley is a writer and editor specializing in supply chain, logistics, and material handling, and a lecturer at MIT's Center for Transportation & Logistics. She previously was Senior Editor at DC VELOCITY and Editor of DCV's sister publication, CSCMP's Supply Chain Quarterly. Prior to joining AGiLE Business Media in 2007, she spent 20 years at Logistics Management magazine as Managing Editor and Senior Editor covering international trade and transportation. Prior to that she was an export traffic manager for 10 years. She holds a B.A. in Asian Studies from Cornell University.

Recent Articles by Toby Gooley

Better together

Rightsizing your forklift fleet in uncertain times

National Forklift Safety Day 2020 focuses on safety best practices

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • Roadrunner Freight bolsters LTL capabilities with $50 million in new backing

  • Southeastern Freight Lines Promotes Marty Cox to Service Center Manager in Cincinnati, Ohio

  • Pull back or go deeper—how the pandemic influenced shipper-3PL engagement

  • Boston Dynamics trials box-lifting robot for unloading trucks

  • The growing crisis in agriculture exports: interview with Peter Friedmann

Now Playing on DCV-TV

A02a30da e08d 4f4a 871f ca73c997a842

StorFast®, automated storage and retrieval (ASRS) system

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
The StorFast ASRS system provides high-density, lights-out, 24/7-access to all products in the warehouse. The shuttle/cart system allows multiple orders to be processed simultaneously and can flex between high-volume input and peak shipping schedules to optimize the utilization and efficiency of the system at all...

FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

  • Special Report: Supply Chain Trends in Retail & Consumer Goods

  • Fortify Your Operational Resilience

  • Cold Storage Automation: Leveraging Advanced Technologies to Meet Increasing Demand

  • The modern warehouse: Maximizing productivity and capacity

View More

Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • ADVERTISING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • STAFF
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright ©2021. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing