This UNIC mini crane’s new home is 180 metres underground in a dark, dusty and dry underground salt mine in Cheshire, UK.
The 0.995 tonne capacity UNIC URW-095 spider crane is working at Winsford Rock Salt Mine which holds the record as the largest and oldest salt mine in the UK. The crane provides lifting power when it is needed for maintenance or repair work on the mine’s processing lines and conveyors belts.
The salt mine is the same size as 700 football pitches and the rock salt that is mined from here helps to de-ice the country’s roads in the winter. This salt was formed an incredible 220 million years ago in the Triassic period. Discovered in 1844, the mine’s environment also makes it perfect for safely storing historical records and artefacts.
Thanks to their portability and minimal dimensions UNIC mini cranes are often hired for underground lifting challenges at hard to reach locations such as water treatment plants and this underground bunker at a Belgian Cyclotron research facility.
