Every fabricator should be aware that manual handling can present a real safety risk every day in factory. Heavy slabs, irregular stone pieces and frequent movement between saws, trolleys, CNC machines and hand finishing stations put fabricators at risk of musculoskeletal injuries, dropped slabs and costly factory incidents.
At Stonegate, we take safety seriously – and so does Elephant. That’s why every Elephant lifter and crane is built with fabricator safety in mind, allowing you to manoeuvre stone slabs with ease, while protecting your team, your workshop and your material.
Elephant Vacuum Lifters
Vacuum lifters are a cornerstone of safe slab handling in fabrication – especially as slabs get larger, heavier and more complex in shape. We offer two standout vacuum solutions designed for different stages of the fabrication process, and to suit different factory requirements – a 3-pad and a 4-pad lifter.
Both models share features that stone fabricators care about most:
The Elephant 3-Pad Lifter
The Elephant 3-pad lifter is built for the toughest lifting. With a 625kg capacity, it handles the heaviest slabs in your workshop without hassle.
It is designed with larger suction cups which carry more load individually, making it ideal for safe handling of extra large slabs. Its 1800mm beam makes it easier to manoeuvre in confined spaces. Where a spreader is required, larger beams are available to suit the slabs you need to lift.
Choose the 3-pad lifter to move large slabs with minimal strain, grip security and greater control.
The 4-Pad Lifter
While the 3-pad lifter is built for maximum lifting capacity, the 4-pad lifter offers greater versatility when handling processed stone pieces, including sink cut outs, L-shaped sections and large backsplashes that require extra stability and control.
The 4-pad lifter features a longer, 2500mm beam and medium sized suction cups spread across the span, enabling even weight distribution along long or irregular sections of a slab. This reduces excess stress and weight on any one cup, preventing cups from losing suction and slabs from slipping or dropping.
Stone pieces such as long kitchen islands, waterfall panels and worktops with sink or hob cut outs are far more fragile during production and handling. The design of the 4-pad lifter helps fabricators avoid damage before pieces reach their destination.
Elephant Column Cranes
A jib crane is a central piece of a safe lifting setup in a workshop. When uploading slabs or transferring them to a saw, the Elephant Column Crane eliminates the need for manual handling.
The Elephant articulated column crane can be installed on a column or mounted to the wall, making it ideal for tight-space workshops and compact layouts. The 3m + 4m articulated jib gives you serious reach and flexibility and it’s ideal for busy fabrication factories with its 270˚ rotation.
A key feature of the jib crane is its 1000kg lift capacity at up to 7m reach – one of the largest load ratings available in the industry! This is a huge benefit as longer reaches like this require lower safe working loads, due to leverage and structural weight.
Elephant sets realistic and safe load ratings, giving you complete confidence to lift large slabs every day without risking injury or material damage. Another benefit of using a column crane like this is that fewer fabricators are required to do heavy lifting, which aligns directly with the HSE manual handling best practice and drastically reduces risk in your workshop.
So, why choose Elephant for lifting and handling?
Every Elephant lifting and handling solution is designed to improve the way you move stone slabs – reducing manual strain, lowering the risk of injury, preventing costly damages and streamlining workflows. Elephant helps workshops work smarter and faster in several ways:
The right lifting equipment isn’t just about complying with the latest HSE regulation – it helps you move faster, avoid risks, reduce costly damages and keep production running.
To learn more about the range of Elephant lifting solutions we offer, visit our website, contact our Technical Team, or book in a visit to our Innovation Hub, where you can discuss taking your lifting and handling safety to the next level! Contact us on +44(0)1482 620400 or [email protected] for more information.
