Stertil Koni upgrades lifts for Go-Ahead Ireland and Courtney Coaches

Go-Ahead Ireland has increased its number of Stertil Koni heavy duty vehicle lifts with the purchase of a 25-tonne capacity Skylift to support workshop operations at its Dublin depot.

Go-Ahead Ireland’s Ballymount depot in Dublin opened in July 2018 and operates 24 routes in the Outer Dublin Metropolitan Area. The business has a team of over 450 colleagues – based at Dublin and Go-Ahead Ireland’s second depot in Naas, Co. Kildare – who ensure the smooth travel of over five million passengers annually.

Following the successful use of 12 sets of Stertil Koni 7.5-tonne wireless mobile column lifts at the Dublin and Naas depots since 2018, the new 25-tonne capacity heavy-duty Skylift SKY250-10 ensures greater flexibility within the Dublin workshop.

The surface-mounted Skylift simplifies a wide range of duties including servicing, maintenance, repairs and the checking of wheel alignments on the Go-Ahead Ireland’s fleet of 140 single- and double-deck buses. Versatility is assured by the lift’s 10-metre long platforms which offer a low drive-on height of 350mm and a lifting space of 1.75m. Also, with no base frame, no cross beams and only a lifting leg at each end of the platform, the Skylift provides engineers with unobstructed access to raised vehicles from all sides.

“We rely on the Skylift to help our engineers meet a demanding work schedule,” says Andy Cross, engineering manager, Go-Ahead Ireland. “In a typical day, the lift is in use for up to 12 hours to simplify seven daily inspections, three full services and as many as 20 unplanned tasks. Based on the performance and reliability of our existing mobile column lifts, we had no hesitation in adding the Skylift to our list of Stertil Koni equipment.”

Stertil Koni has also supplied three sets of wireless mobile column lifts as part of upgrades to the Bracknell workshop of Courtney Coaches which operates a fleet of more than 60 buses and coaches comprising Volvo, Scania, Mercedes, Optare and ADL vehicles, both single- and double-decks.

To cope with an increasing workload, and as part of a major upgrade to its workshop facilities, Courtney Coaches decided to replace existing vehicle lifting equipment with three sets of Stertil Koni wireless mobile column lifts, ST1075FWA. Each heavy-duty lift provides a lifting capacity of 7.5tonnes so, when used as a set of four, the combined capacity is 30tonnes to ensure safe, smooth and controlled lifting.

Long-life deep cycle batteries will power the lifts for at least a week on average before recharging is necessary. The batteries can then be charged overnight via a 230v single phase supply. With no cables on the workshop floor, the risk of tripping is removed, providing valuable health and safety benefits and, with no power supply necessary, the system can be used safely inside or outdoors.