CPA Bulletin

28 CPA Bulletin > November 2024 www.cpa.uk.net ESTA: 1 ESTA New research carried out by ESTA has exposed deep concerns in the heavy lifting and transport sectors about engine malfunctions thought to be caused by AdBlue additives. ESTA has been urging members to send in information about problems with the use of AdBlue in mobile cranes and SPMTs after concerns were raised at a meeting in the summer between association members and representatives of the crane manufacturers through FEM, the European Materials Handling Federation. As a result, ESTA decided to try and identify the precise scale and nature of the problem. At the time of writing, 55 companies had responded to ESTA from 10 different countries with the biggest numbers coming from the UK, the Netherlands and France. They reported problems with mobile and crawler cranes, trucks and SPMTs. The commonest incident was a public road breakdown with almost half of the respondents saying that safety had been compromised as a result. A small number reported dangerous interruptions to wind turbine assembly and port load-out work. Even more concerning, many of the companies said they had experienced multiple incidents in the past two years with three suffering more than 20 in that time. AdBlue is a mixture of water and urea used in diesel engines to minimise the production of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. A key concern is that if the AdBlue system malfunctions – perhaps because the engine is too cold – then the crane’s engine can lose power and eventually shut down, with potentially dangerous consequences. ESTA Director Ton Klijn said: “We will continue gathering information and then decide on the next steps. What is already clear, however, is that this is a serious issue with considerable safety implications - and it needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency.” UK Firms Underline Scale of AdBlue Safety Concerns ESTA Awards 2025 - Entry Forms Now Available The entry forms for the 2025 ESTA Awards are now available from the ESTA website at https://estaeurope.eu/2025- award-entry-forms/. The closing date is 10th January 2025. The 2025 Awards will take place on the evening of Thursday 10th April in The Westin Grand hotel in Munich, during next year’s Bauma Exhibition. Winners of the 2024 edition of the awards included Ainscough and Allelys from the UK. The awards will undoubtedly be a highlight of the year. Crane winch gearbox maintenance guide free to all ESTA has agreed to make its new guide on mobile crane winch gearbox maintenance freely available to any interested organisation as part of its ongoing push to improve safety standards. Circulation of guides produced by ESTA is normally restricted to members, but ESTA crane expert Klaus Meissner said: “This important safety issue should be discussed and understood by a wide range of organisations, including relevant official bodies outside ESTA - so we felt it was right that it received the widest possible exposure.” Members have been asked to reconsider their approach to mobile crane winch gearbox maintenance the guide’s authors believe the new proposals could both improve safety and - in some cases - save money. The guide can be downloaded from the Library section of ESTA’s website. ESTA, the European Association of Abnormal Road Transport and Mobile Cranes, was formed in 1976 and has over 100 members from 25 countries. Its UK members are the CPA and the Heavy Transport Association (HTA). Further information about ESTA is on ESTA’s website at www.estaeurope.eu