Projects portfolio
Learn more about some of Topax’ great achievements to have a better understanding of what we can do for you!
Project
CAP Style Modular Crate and Storage (On site job)
With a drawing supplied by the customer, we designed a crate that would accept the product and meet the transporting and storage specifications for this project. Our designers planned a ‘CAP’ style modular crate that was pre-built in our facility; reducing our time…
Project
Purposed Built Base
Topax was approached by a customer to design a special base that would transport a 63,800 lb heat exchanger, 31FT long x 12FT wide x 49” high. The trick was that it would travel via air and had to fit through the doorway of the aircraft…
Project
Purposed Built Bulk Crating
A customer approached Topax with a challenge to protective package 21 Control Panels and peripheral equipment, destined for South Korea. The entire order was to be loaded and blocked into 40FT High Cube containers. The challenge was that the crated panels…
Project
Purposed Built Re-crating
With only 12 hours of deadline, Topax had to completely reconstruct a crate made by an unknown packer to make the product able to meet its flight to Germany. Nothing from the previous crate was able to be saved…
Project
CAP Style Modular Crate and Storage (On site job)
The job specification called for long term storage with possible exposure to weather elements. To meet those requirements, we designed the crate with ¾” Tongue & Groove (T&G) pine, asphalt paper lining the sides, ends & lid, making it more resistant to moisture and any other conditions of storage. The lid also had an extra layer of plywood and was topped with 7mm shrink wrap making it completely waterproof. Crate was made of T&G as it resists impacts better and protects against long sun exposure, rain and snow. Designing, cutting and initial assembling was all done in our facility before going on site to customer’s facility. The completed empty crate carrying premade dunnage is shown in the picture above.
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Once completed, the empty crate was delivered the day before we were due on site. At customer’s facility, the product was landed on the base with the MIL-PRF-131K vacuum sealing barrier laying between the base and the product, with desiccant added just prior to closing the bag to absorb any moisture (A). The top section of this piece that was designed to move latterly, tied down with cord strapping and later with blocking.
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The MIL-PRF-131K barrier was closed with vacuum sealing, reducing the room for humidity, consequently slowing the corrosion process. Blocking was installed along with cord strapping to eliminate any chance of movement in every direction while in transit. As per the specification of our customer, we added enough desiccant for a 2-year term since this shipment would be stored for a while. Finally, the cap was landed and secured on designated place.
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During that time, the humidity indicator was to be monitored at specific points in time. We added an inspection port protected with clear plastic to allow the humidity indicator reading. Steel strapping and shipping marks were added, giving more integrity and information about the crate. Finally, this product was properly protected and ready to go into storage. Topax quality control signs off on every step of the project from A-Z.
Step 5/5Project
Purposed Built Base
Topax was approached by a customer to design a special base that would transport a 63,800 lb heat exchanger, 31FT long x 12FT wide x 49” high. The trick was that it would travel via air and had to fit through the doorway of the aircraft, which is concave and required exceptional precision. If not, the piece would not fit at a certain height. Our team had to roll up their sleeves and create a project to pack and transport the widest and heaviest single piece ever transported by Airbridge in North America.
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It all started with planning and project management. Our designers projected a base to both support the 63,800 lb heat exchanger, 31FT long x 12FT wide x 49” high and to fit through the doorway of the aircraft. The concave plane entrance required height to be exact, or it would not fit through the plane’s door due to the side's extensions. Prior to cutting any wood, the drawing was submitted to the airline for the Load Master to approve.
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Once approved, the base was constructed out of dense hardwood in 3 different sections. Working in cooperation with the customer, our team managed to build this base ahead of time to be ready for when the heat exchanger arrives at Topax, improving efficiency of the project and saving time, as customer had a short deadline for this project.
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When the Heat Exchanger arrived at Topax, it was landed directly onto the finished base, with VCI plastic sheeting placed between the base and the heat exchanger. Once the positioning was confirmed to be correct, the heat shrinking process started. This process helped to reduce the air, leaving less room for moisture, and shaping it to the part, improving the plastic resistance and ensuring proper dimensions; sizing was the key for this job.
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After the heat shrinking was completed and cord lashing installed, the machine was properly secured and stable for transportation, as well as protected from corrosion thanks to the VCI sheeting envelope. Ready to be lifted as 1 big piece onto the truck as planned in our project.
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Piece was trucked to Chicago O’Hare Airport, lifted with a crane and loaded onto an airline pallet to be later loaded on the plane. Note how base adds stability and guarantees a more efficient handling of the piece.
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The loaded pallet was lined up into position with the door of the aircraft and special elevators were used to get it to the opening of the door. An impressive number of personnel was required to load this piece into place, and it was estimated the clearance on either side of the aircraft’s door was 5cm – pretty tight for a machine of this size.
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Once the big challenge of passing through the narrow door was completed, there was lots of room for the piece. Note the airline straps added to hold everything to the airline pallet. This unit became the widest and heaviest single piece ever airlifted by Airbridge in North America! Team Topax is proud to be an important part of this achievement.
Step 8/8Project
Purposed Built Bulk Crating
A customer approached Topax with a challenge to create protective package for 21 Control Panels and peripheral equipment, destined for South Korea. The entire order was to be loaded and blocked into 40FT High Cube containers. The challenge was that the crated panels measured 111” in height and the door of the ocean container measures 100”, it wouldn’t fit.
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With the panels arriving in our shop floor on existing bases, we started working on a design to complete the crate. Since the machines were too tall to fit in the container in the vertical position, our design team formulated a packaging that allowed us to change the orientation for transportation. Panels were packed in one orientation and transported in other, as illustrated above.
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With the design completed, it was time to start the work. Using 6 ft long forks with foam installed on top to protect the inside of the lid, we lifted the panels, after removing the 2 existing nuts / washers and the 2 lag screws. With panel lifted, we drilled through holes in the wood base where the lag screws were, and new bolts were then installed.
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A sheet of foam wrap was placed over the base, then the premade MIL-PRF-131K vacuum sealed barrier. The 4 bolts were inserted through the 2 materials and gasket paper combined with silicone applied to stop air from entering the bag. Another sheet of foam wrap was put in place to protect the MIL-PRF-131K, then panel was landed and secured with washers & nuts in 4 locations.
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Same procedure was followed for the 21 units, as they were identical. This procedure improved productivity and allowed an efficient standardized quality control operation. Photo above shows how the industrial process was handled by Topax in our facility.
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After panel was well attached to the base, air was removed, desiccant added and the MIL-PRF-131K bag was closed. As the bag conformed to the shape of the panel, the foam wrap protects the bag from being ruptured at pressure points such as at the corners. This process protected panels from damages by moisture while they were in transit and/or stored.
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As ends, side & lid were erected after vacuum sealing completed, foam cushioning was used at every point of contact. Additional sustainability structures were added to the inside of the crate to better distribute the weight and to ensure product doesn’t move during crate orientation change or in transit.
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Once panels were fully crated, metal strapping was installed around the outside the box (A), adding more integrity to the crate. In order to fit these into the ocean container, the crates were then ready to be tipped onto their side. The skid runners on the side (B) were designed to become the base of the crate and hold the weight while tipped. Lifting eyes were installed in 3 locations with the purpose of allowing the crate orientation change and make for a controlled descent, when required.
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Time to lift these panels on their side: Attached the lifting chains to 3 locations (A) and slowly tip the crate over. On site at its final destination, the opposite procedure was used to stand the crates up, open and extract the panels. Each crate was marked with instructions for lifting (B) and with cargo descriptions (C).
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Crates were then loaded to the container, one at a time following the project layout. As loading moved forward, bracing was installed on the side (A) and right to the door (B) to eliminate any chance of movement while in transit.
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Components and other machine parts were also crated and loaded into a container. All product was vacuum sealed to protect it in transit. All crates arrived safely in South Korea. Job well done!
Step 11/11Project
Purposed Built Re-crating
With only 12 hours of deadline, Topax had to completely reconstruct a crate made by an unknown packer to make the product able to meet its flight to Germany. Nothing from the previous crate was able to be saved, and the new crate was significantly higher level of efficiency and much better quality.
Step 1/7
The crate above was produced by an unknown source to transport a complete landing gear weighing 2190 lbs to Germany. The crate itself was constructed with particle board and 1 x 4 cleating was inadequate to carry this load and had failed its purpose. The machine would be vulnerable to serious damages during its journey and may have not been able to finish its trip due to handling issues if the owner had insisted to transport with this crate.
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The crate was sent to Topax to be properly packaged for air transportation to Germany. The components of the crate were not usable including the red strapping; it was unknown how old the green VCI (Volatile Corrosion Inhibitor) plastic was, so this also was replaced. Topax was given a 12hr window to have it properly packaged and delivered in time to meet its flight.
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A purpose-built base was constructed by Topax to suit the weight and size of the landing gear. A blue VCI plastic was wrapped around the unit as it was landed on the new base. The wheels were blocked and choked from moving and a box frame combined with foam cushioning supports the neck. Finally, red VCI tape was used to close the VCI envelope, protecting it from corrosion.
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Premade 2 x 4 ends and sides were erected. Note the properly constructed 3-way corners. Sides of the machine were secured in every direction to avoid machine displacement. The foam wrap installed between machine and blocks ensures VCI doesn’t tear and no scratch damages to the machine happens while in transit.
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Once a Topax Quality inspector had approved the blocking, plywood sheathing was installed, and steel strapping was applied to add even more integrity to the crate. This packaging was built to have 4-way access, making the crate easy to maneuver. Topax always considers product protection as well as handling efficiency throughout transportation journey.
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Now fully protected from physical and moisture damage, carrying with proper shipping markings and accurate weight and dimensions, this unit was ready to ship on time. With teamwork, trained personal and proper project planning, Topax makes quality products on time.
Step 7/7Quality you can trust
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Quality you can trust
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Orders successfully completed
Countries exported to
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Contact us for a quote, make an order or to get more information about any service you are interested in. Our team will provide you with all the protective packaging information you need for your future project.
With a drawing supplied by the customer, we designed a crate that would accept the product and meet the transporting and storage specifications for this project. Our designers planned a ‘CAP’ style modular crate that was pre-built in our facility; reducing our time on site and making it much easier to access the product. On site, once the product was landed on the base, it was vacuum sealed, secured with strapping, blocked, then the cap was lowered and lagged to the base. At final destination, the lag screws were removed, and the cap was lifted as one piece, making the product easily accessible; this crate could be used again for something similar.
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