Wimmer and Felbermayr handle gas power plant relocation in Bavaria

 
September 18, 2025 | Moritz Glück

In spring 2025, Wimmer Maschinentransporte, together with Felbermayr’s Memmingen plant, carried out the dismantling and transport of key components from a gas power plant in Hausham, southern Bavaria. The destination was the port of Kehlheim, from where the journey continued by inland waterway to Antwerp. In total, two transformers as well as four generators and four turbines, each weighing up to 100 tons, were moved.

What began as a simple transport request from a Dutch client quickly developed into a much larger project. Before the heavy components could be loaded, they first had to be professionally dismantled and removed from the plant. To accomplish this, Felbermayr Germany brought in the specialists from its subsidiary Wimmer Maschinentransporte. “Projects like this allow us to fully play to our strengths: Wimmer’s expertise goes far beyond machine transport. With our rigging services, we dismantle entire plants and machines regardless of size, weight, or complexity, offering our customers a unique all-in-one package,” explains managing director Holger Stegmann.

Dismantling under tight conditions

The greatest challenge was removing turbines, generators, and transformers weighing up to 100 tons from the confined power plant hall. Project manager of Wimmer Maschinentransporte Thomas Schüssler explains: “To expose the massive components of the power plant, we first dismantled the intake nozzle piece by piece – only then could we begin dismantling the core components.” To achieve this, the experienced expert team set up a hydraulic gantry system, lifted the components, and shifted them sideways, centimeter by centimeter. “Since the limited space made the use of cranes impossible, additional safety precautions had to be taken – every move had to be exact,” emphasizes Schüssler. Afterwards, self-propelled industrial rollers – known as Sefiros – with a load capacity of up to 176 tons were positioned under the giants and maneuvered them safely outside. In the final step, the heavy-lift specialists used a second 720-ton gantry to lift the components once more and place them with millimeter precision onto a twelve-axle girder bridge combination.

Heavy haulage in clockwork precision

The next phase saw Felbermayr Germany and Wimmer Maschinentransporte transporting two of the ten oversized components every 48 hours in shuttle operation from Hausham to the port of Kehlheim – always in sync with the ongoing dismantling work. Beyond the challenges of disassembly, removal, and logistics, the route itself required particular finesse. Bridges, narrow roads, and countless traffic signs complicated the process. Around 200 square meters of steel plates were laid, no-parking zones set up, and numerous signs temporarily relocated just to make the transports possible.

Teamwork across company borders

For the teams of Wimmer Maschinentransporte and Felbermayr Germany, the project marked another milestone in their collaboration. With the transshipment at the port of Kehlheim and onward inland waterway transport to Antwerp by Haeger & Schmidt Logistics, the team effort was complete. “This project demonstrates very clearly how strongly our business units complement each other. From dismantling and removal to heavy haulage and inland shipping, we provide our customers with all services from a single source,” concludes Holger Kunz, Branch Manager of Felbermayr Germany in Memmingen, after the successful project completion.

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