Recessed chock, set of supports with pipes and manufacturing method

Abstract

The invention relates to a recessed chock (1) which supports at least one metal pipe (10) and is in the form of a solid wooden part with at least one recess (2) forming a supporting surface which closely follows the shape of a portion of an arc of the outer surface of the pipe. The cross section (7) of the saddle (1) corresponds to the weight of the pipe. This chock is made of wood from resinous softwoods. The set of supports described above with pipes corresponds to one load. The invention also relates to a method for manufacturing the chocks (1) using a numerical control machine. The chocks (1) made of wood from resinous softwoods avoid extensive sap leakage.

Description

Description Title of the invention: Imprint wedge, assembly of supports with pipes and manufacturing method.

[0001] The present invention relates to the imprinted wedges, supporting at least one metal pipeline pipe, forming a wedge cradle.

[0002] The pipes are placed on at least two cradles to secure each end. Large diameter pipes, for example 2000 mm or even 2700 mm, require large cradles to secure the pipe and support its weight.

[0003] Traditionally, these cradles are made by assembling several pieces, namely triangular corner pieces fixed to parallelepiped stringers. The use of two types of wood is necessary because, when the pipes are installed, they are not always centered on the cradle and sometimes rest on the upper end of one of the corner pieces. Furthermore, this can lead to detachment, hence the need for metal fixing. In addition, this assembly is not consistent from one piece to another during production runs. However, when the pipes are held on two cradles, the footprint of each cradle must be identical within the specified tolerance range.

[0004] Using poplar for the cradle allows the pipes to be transported without damage. However, this poplar wood is at risk of deteriorating and no longer supporting the pipes. To ensure this support, poplar wedges were assembled using the best available technique, attached to a parallelepiped-shaped pine beam with nailed or screwed metal fittings. However, the construction of these cradles still presents the drawback of an assembly that requires the use of different types of parts.

[0005] To avoid this drawback, indentations were made in the pipe support stringers, forming a cradle-like support. This one-piece wooden support eliminates the need to assemble different pieces of wood. This solution is advantageous because it is specifically designed for the pipe. The cradle features intermediate spaces that define at least one indentation, creating a support surface that matches at least one-twelfth of the surface's arc. external to the pipe, the cross-section of the cradle corresponding to the load produced by said pipe.

[0006] The use of wooden wedges is particularly useful for temporary shoring and supporting the loads resulting from the weight of pipes made of other materials. Typically, this involves loading pipes where each pipe rests on at least two supports. The advantage of the original wedges was explained by the fact that the main beam was made of pine and the corners of poplar. The indentation is made in the stringer. Therefore, one-piece, solid pine spacers are made from this material, as pine is strong enough to hold the pipes in the indentations. Unlike poplar, pine spacers can accommodate the pipes without breaking.

[0007] It was noted that wood is advantageous for securing objects made of other materials. Wooden chocks also have the advantage of not requiring complex disposal procedures. Indeed, wood left along the roadside is immediately collected by passersby looking for firewood, and at worst, it is biodegradable. Metal pipes often have a coating on their exterior, sometimes made of zinc alloy, cement, or enamel.

[0008] However, it has been discovered that pine wood has drawbacks. Pine is a red wood. These red woods produce a lot of resin. Pine is an oily wood used for exterior applications, for example, for windows; this wood produces resin pockets. These resin pockets come into contact with the pipes. Therefore, the pipe is in contact with a material other than wood.

[0009] Pine wood contains a lot of resin, causing sap to flow. On the holds, these resin pockets aren't always visible depending on the season, but they do cause drips. These resin drips leave marks on the pipes. Therefore, upon arrival, the pipes may be marked by the resin.

[0010] The invention aims to resolve these drawbacks.

[0011] It primarily concerns a wedge with indentations made from a solid piece of wood, supporting metal pipes. This support forms a cradle for securing the pipe on a stockpile or vehicle such as a truck or wagon. This cradle... It is presented as a solid piece with at least one indentation for securing the pipe. The support is made of white softwood to prevent sticky sap from dripping onto the indentation.

[0012] The invention also relates to an assembly of supports with pipes as described above. The assembly constitutes a load. It is characterized in that the lower supports, called bases, have a flat lower surface for contact with the railcar or truck, and the intermediate supports have indentations on their upper faces for pipe supports and indentations on their lower faces for securing pipes.

[0013] The invention also relates to a method for manufacturing cradles for the support of metal pipes, the cradle being formed by at least two cavities, by a numerically controlled machine, and comprises the following steps:

[0014] • creation of one or more reading planes by the machine corresponding to the imprint to be made corresponding to the load of said cylindrical objects;

[0015] • reading the plans by the machine;

[0016] • conversion of plans into digital language;

[0017] • production of cubic pieces in white softwood;

[0018] • securing the piece of wood to a mobile table of sufficient size to support and move the piece of wood;

[0019] • selection of the machine work program adapted to the size of the footprint;

[0020] • movement of the piece of wood along the trajectory of the imprint to be made determined by the numerical language of the machine by passing a band saw held in the same plane during its operation and machining the imprint corresponding to the trajectory calculated by a program;

[0021] • after machining, the table moves back, moving the newly made cradle away from the saw;

[0022] return of the table;

[0023] • ejection of the cradle formed in the piece of wood;

[0024] • installation of a new part (6) and securing for the next machining cycle;

[0025] • drying dyes the wood.

[0026] The invention will be better understood upon reading the figures given by way of non-limiting examples, in which:

[0027] Fig. 1 is a photograph seen from three-quarters below, of an intermediate wedge made of white softwood according to the invention, having respectively on the upper and lower face five impressions.

[0028] Fig. 2 shows two wedges with drawn impressions seen from the front, made of white softwood according to the invention, which differ from the wedge in Fig. 1 in that they have four impressions on the upper and lower faces respectively.

[0029] Fig. 3 is a top view of two intermediate wedges made of white softwood of the type with four top impressions shown in front view in figure 2.

[0030] Fig. 4 is a photograph taken from a three-quarter front view of the two intermediate wedges made of white softwood shown in figure 3, the sun drying having given them a yellow tint.

[0031] Fig. 5 represents a photograph seen from three-quarters above, of six intermediate wedges of the type shown in figure 2 superimposed, sun drying having given a grey tint to the three upper wedges and sheltered drying having given a yellow tint to the three lower wedges.

[0032] Fig. 6 represents an exploded front view drawing of an intermediate impression wedge made of white softwood according to figure 2, with anti-slip coatings made of elastic material being placed in the impressions.

[0033] Fig. 7 is a photograph of seven stacked white softwood wedge supports of the type with two impressions on the upper face, sun-drying having given them a yellow tint.

[0034] Fig. 8 is a photograph of a base wedge made of white softwood of the lower support type for an imprint, drying under cover having given it a grey tint.

[0035] Fig. 9 is a photograph of superimposed wedges, these wedges being of the type of basic supports in Fig. 8.

[0036] Fig. 10 represents a front view drawing of a wedge with one imprint according to figure 8.

[0037] Fig. 11 represents a wedge with a drawn imprint seen from the front, lower support in white softwood according to figures 8 and 10 where a non-slip coating in elastic material is placed under the flat lower face.

[0038] Fig. 12 is a photograph on the right side of superimposed yellow wedges from Fig. 7 and on the left side of superimposed grey wedges from Fig. 9, the grey wedges at the top right highlighting the yellow of the wedges placed to the right.

[0039] Fig. 13 is a front view drawing of a basic wagon chock support made of white softwood having on the upper face three chock impressions and two end impressions, with holes drilled in the end impressions.

[0040] Fig. 14 is a side view drawing of a basic shimming support, showing in dotted lines the bottom of the shimming indentations and the end indentations.

[0041] Fig. 15 is a drawing of a set of supports with pipes corresponding to a load, the upper supports being respectively of the type having on the upper face a shimming indentation and on the lower face two indentations, the intermediate middle supports having respectively two indentations upwards and two indentations downwards and the base supports having two indentations upwards and a flat bearing face downwards.

[0042] Fig. 16 is a front view drawing of the intermediate support made of white softwood for the upper part of the assembly in Fig. 15.

[0043] Fig. 17 is a top-view sectional drawing along the arrows and mixed dotted line of the loading assembly of Fig. 15 with two base supports.

[0044] The wedges 1 with indentations 2 according to the invention, shown in Figures 1 to 14, form a support for a metal pipeline pipe, creating a cradle for securing it. These wedges with indentations 1 support one or more pipes on vehicles such as trucks, trailers, railcars, swap bodies, or stockpiles in a holding yard. The wedge 1 is a cradle in the form of a solid piece of wood with intermediate plane spaces 3. In pairs, the intermediate plane spaces 3 define an indentation 2. This indentation 2 forms a support surface conforming to at least one-twelfth of the arc of a circle corresponding to the external surface of the pipe. The width or thickness 4 of the wedge 1 is sized according to the weight of the pipe. The wedge 1a, made of softwood and shown in Figure 1, has five upper indentations 2a symmetrical to five lower indentations 2b. The section or thickness 4 corresponds to the load produced by the pipes intended to be placed on the footprints 2.The molded wedge, supporting metal pipes as shown in Fig. 1, is made of softwood such as fir or spruce. Softwood has the advantage over pine that it does not exude large quantities of sticky sap. Therefore, sap drips that can damage the pipes are avoided. It is advantageous for the pipes to rest on wood, as other materials, such as sap, can be harmful to them. The wedges in Figs. 2 to 5 differ from the wedge in Fig. 1 in that, being gray or yellow in color obtained through drying, they have four indentations 2 located between five intermediate plane spaces 3 on the upper and lower faces, respectively. The mixed dashed lines 5 represent the center of the indentation and the axis of the arc of the indentation surface, as indicated by arrow 6.

[0045] Identical elements retained the same reference symbols across the different figures.

[0046] To hold one or more pipes, it is necessary to place at least two wedges 1 with the indentations 2 aligned with the axis of each pipe. Fig. 3 is a top view of two wedges 1b holding four pipes In the upper recesses 2a, the wedges 1b are positioned so that the axes of the respective recesses 2a of the intermediate supports made of softwood coincide. Thus, four axes 5 and eight recesses 2a are shown in Fig. 3; the two arrows 6 indicate a coincident axis. These wedges 1b of the four-recess type are shown in front view in Figure 2, where the first support can conceal the second. Alternatively, more wedges 1b can be used, but the axes will remain coincident from one wedge to the next so that the pipes are centered in the different recesses.

[0047] The wedges, which support at least one metal pipe according to the invention, are yellow in color, obtained by sun-drying the support, which is originally made of white softwood. At least two supports are required to hold the pipes, ensuring each end is secured. More wedges can be used. Fig. 4 shows a photograph of two intermediate wedge supports made of white softwood of the type shown in Figure 2, corresponding to the top view in Fig. 3, with four indentations on the top and four on the bottom. Sun-drying has given them a yellow tint. These wedges are intermediate because they are designed for pipes placed above and below said wedges.

[0048] In addition to the yellow wedges, wedges 1c with indentations 2, supporting at least one metal pipe according to the invention, are gray in color, obtained by drying the white softwood support in a sheltered environment. Figure 5 illustrates these colors with a three-quarter top-view photograph of six intermediate wedge supports 1b, 1c made of white softwood of the type shown in Figure 2, stacked one on top of the other. Sheltered drying gave a gray color to the three upper supports 1c, and sun-drying gave a yellow color to the three lower supports 1b.

[0049] The cavities 2, 2a, and 2b have a clean surface created by sawing to match the clean surface of the metal pipes. Fig. 6 shows an exploded view drawing of a wedge 1b with two sets of four cavities 2a and 2b, and an intermediate support made of softwood as shown in Figure 2. The support is a solid piece of wood. The wedge is intermediate because it is designed for pipes placed in cavities above and below the wedge 2b. Anti-slip coatings made of elastic material 7 are placed in the indentations 2a, 2b.

[0050] These coatings (7) are designed to improve transport safety by preventing pipe slippage during braking. This material is a rubber-like compound made from recycled plastic that exhibits rubber-like properties. The material is black. It is applied to the surface of the indentations (2) in certain cases, primarily for small-diameter pipes. The size of the indentation surface is determined by the nominal diameter of the pipe being transported. It should be noted that the nominal pipe diameters, symbolized by DN on the diagrams, are the internal diameters.

[0051] By limiting the thickness of the anti-slip plastic coating 7 to 5 mm, it is not necessary to modify the diameter of the indentation. Therefore, shims with and without coating 7 can benefit from the same indentation manufacturing steps. The coating 7 shown in Fig. 6 is 5 mm thick, and when the pipe reaches the indentation, it descends and reaches the bottom of the rubber-coated indentation. Consequently, there is no need to create a special indentation to maintain the pipe's outer diameter in contact with the indentation, unlike pipes with external coatings, such as concrete or enamel coatings. These external coatings increase the pipe's outer diameter compared to the standard nominal diameter. Such pipes no longer reach the bottom of the intended indentation based on their nominal diameter (DN).These pipes with an external coating require a special mold with a larger diameter to accommodate the increased outer diameter of the pipe. The rubber coating can be applied to the mold during the molding process. It can also be applied later, for example, by the truck driver.

[0052] Wedges 1 with impressions 2 can be used to extend the pipes and create multiple levels. In this case, impressions 2 overlap. This requires several wedges. Fig. 7 is a photograph of seven wedges 1c with two upper impressions 2a, made of white softwood, stacked one on top of the other; sun-drying has given them a yellow tint.

[0053] The wedge 1, made of white softwood, of the type with a single support imprint 2a shown in Fig. 8, is a basic support. Its lower face is flat for placement on a wagon, truck, or the bottom of a swap body. This basic wedge 1d, with a support imprint 2a for a large-diameter pipe, also has external cut imprints 8. Thus, its upper face has three imprints 2a, 8. Drying in a sheltered location has given the basic wedge 1d a gray tint. Fig. 9 shows a photograph of gray wedges 1d. These are basic support supports made of white softwood, stacked one on top of the other. The front view drawing in Fig. 10 shows the wedge 1d with an upper imprint 2a for a large-diameter pipe. The external imprints 8 are deeper than the support imprint 2a. These external impressions 8 are cut at the level of the greatest depth indicated by the vertical radius in dashed line 9. The wedge 1d is in a solid piece of wood.The underside of wedge 1d, being a bearing surface on the wagon or truck, is flat.

[0054] In a truck variant, for safety against braking, the wedge 1d, with a support recess 2a, has a non-slip plastic coating 7a on its underside. The wedge 1d shown in Fig. 11 has an upper recess 2a for a large-diameter pipe. It is a solid piece of softwood with a non-slip coating of elastic material placed under its flat underside. This coating can be applied in a subsequent step after the wedge 1d has been manufactured.

[0055] The photograph showing on the left side superimposed basic chocks grey 1d, on the right side superimposed intermediate chocks yellow 1c, highlighting the grey chocks in the upper right of fig. 12 shows two chock colours 1. This allows for identification with a colour code, for example the grey basic chocks for trucks or wagons being sent to the vehicles and the yellow intermediate chocks being sent to the yard for prior stock installation.

[0056] Wagons are wider than trucks. For the same nominal diameter, for example that provided by the two-indented upper spacers 1c 2a shown in Fig. 7, the wagons are large enough to accommodate three-indented upper spacers 1e 2a. This type of spacer is suitable for the shoring of For DN 800 pipes on a truck or trailer 1.80 m wide, the chock 1 would be limited to two sockets 2a, whereas the wider wagon accepts a chock 1e with three sockets 2a. This chock 1e has external sockets 8 at its ends, each containing at least one through hole 9 for a screw extending from the upper face of the external socket to its lower face on the support. Fig. 13 shows the basic chock support for a wagon made of softwood, which has three chock sockets 2a and two end sockets 8 on its upper face, situated between four intermediate plane spaces 3, with the nail holes 9 in the end sockets 8.

[0057] To prevent the base chock 1 for trucks from tipping over during hard braking, the chock's height from the bottom of the indentation 2a to the bearing face does not exceed the width of the wooden support, with a maximum height forming a square in cross-section. Fig. 14 is a side view drawing of a base chock support, which shows the bottom of the chock indentations 2a and the end indentations 8 in dotted lines. Thus, the dimension of the indentation 2a of the wooden support has been calculated so that, from the bottom of the indentation 2a to the bearing face on the truck, relative to the width 4 of the wooden support, the height does not exceed the square. For example, with a wooden chock width of 15 cm, its height from the bottom of the indentation 2a to the bearing face can be 14 cm. The height must not exceed the square.

[0058] The wedges 1 with their recesses allow for the creation of an assembly comprising several pipes 10 and several wedges 1 for loading onto a vehicle such as a truck, railcar, or swap body. Fig. 15 shows a front view of such a load with three levels of intermediate support wedges made of softwood. At the bottom, wedges 1c with two upper recesses 2a and flat lower faces rest on the vehicle. At the top of the base wedge 1c, two pipes are secured in the recesses 2a of this wedge. Intermediate wedges with two lower and two upper recesses are placed on the pipes above the base wedges. The two upper recesses of the intermediate wedge allow it to support two additional pipes. At the top of the load, a wedge 1f with one upper recess 2a and two lower recesses 2b allows it to be placed on the two previous pipes and to wedge the upper pipe in the 2a slots. The upper part of the loading platform has one slot on its upper face and two slots on its lower face, allowing it to rest on two pipes and support two upper loading pipes. This upper support wedge is shown in Fig. 16; it is an intermediate support with one upward-facing slot (2a) and two downward-facing slots (2b). Thus, the upper pipe rests in the center of the loading platform.

[0059] The base supports 1 are placed directly on the vehicle. In the storage area, the assembly only includes the pipes and intermediate spacers 1. This allows these assemblies to be lifted by the lower pipes. This assembly does not include a base spacer, as the pipes 10 are stored, with the lower pipes on the ground to allow for handling by forklift.

[0060] The pipes are placed head-to-tail, which prevents the joints 1 1 of different levels of pipes 10 from coming into contact with each other.

[0061] Fig. 17 is a cross-sectional drawing, viewed from above along the arrows 12 and the mixed dashed line 13, of the loading assembly shown in Fig. 15 with two base supports. In Fig. 17, the support assembly 1 with pipes 10 is shown with two lower supports, referred to as bases, securing two pipes 10 in two respective recesses 2a by wedges 1c. The intermediate flat spaces 3 are sized according to the nominal diameter of the pipes to prevent contact between pipes at the same level. In the assembly corresponding to a load, the lower supports, referred to as bases, have a flat lower surface for contact with the railcar or truck, and the intermediate and upper supports have recesses on their upper faces for pipe supports and recesses on their lower faces for holding pipes.

[0062] In a first variant of the embodiment, a third vertical series of wedges 1c, 1f (not shown) is placed halfway between the end wedges shown in Fig. 17.

[0063] In another variant of the assembly, with the pipes 10 in a transport vehicle, truck, wagon or swap body, the assembly includes at least two base wedges 1c in the lower part and wedges of softwood timber with a flat upper surface forming a so-called square load.

[0064] The process for manufacturing cradles for the purpose of supporting metal pipes, the cradle being formed by at least two cavities 2, by a numerically controlled machine, the process comprises at least the following steps:

[0065] - creation of one or more reading planes by the machine corresponding to the imprint 2 to be created corresponding to the load of said pipes 10,

[0066] - -reading of the plans by the machine,

[0067] - conversion of plans into digital language,

[0068] - production of cubic pieces in white softwood,

[0069] - securing a piece of softwood to a mobile table of sufficient size to support and move said piece,

[0070] - selection of the machine work program adapted to the size of the footprint,

[0071] - movement of the piece of white softwood along the trajectory of the imprint to be made, determined by the machine's numerical language, passing a band saw held in the same plane during its operation and machining the imprint 2 corresponding to the trajectory calculated by a program,

[0072] - after machining, the table is moved back, moving the newly produced imprinted block 1 away from the saw.

[0073] - return of the table,

[0074] - ejection of the wedge with the imprint 1 formed in the solid piece of wood,

[0075] - Installation of a new piece of solid wood and securing it for the next machining cycle.

[0076] - sun drying to obtain a block with imprint 1 made of white softwood with a yellow tint.

[0077] As an alternative, in order to obtain a block with imprint 1 made of light grey softwood, it is dried in the shade of the sun.

[0078] The process of producing the impression blocks from a single piece of white softwood can be followed by a step of applying anti-slip coatings made of elastic material placed in the impressions. This material can be black goumi, which contrasts with the white softwood shown in Fig. 5.

[0079] The process of producing the impression shims from a single piece of solid white softwood can be followed by a step of applying anti-slip coatings made of elastic material 7, 7a, placed in the impressions or, in other embodiments, under the underside of the support 1, which is a solid piece of impression wood. This material can be black goumi, which contrasts with the white softwood, developing a gray or yellow tint after drying. The support shown in Fig. 8 to 11 is a shim with a single impression for large-diameter pipes.

[0080] REFERENCE SIGNS.

[0081] 1. Wedge;

[0082] 1 a. Intermediate wedge with two sets of five indentations;

[0083] 1 b. Intermediate wedge with two sets of four impressions;

[0084] 1 b' Intermediate wedge with two sets of four impressions;

[0085] 1 c. Wedge with two upper indentations;

[0086] 1 d. Base wedge with a support imprint;

[0087] 1 e. Base wedge with three support indentations;

[0088] 1 f Wedge with one upper indentation and two lower indentations;

[0089] 2. Fingerprints;

[0090] 2a. Upper impressions;

[0091] 2b. Lower impressions;

[0092] 3. Intermediate spaces;

[0093] 4. Width or thickness;

[0094] 5. Axis of the arc of the surface of the indentations;

[0095] 6. Arrow;

[0096] 7. Anti-slip coatings;

[0097] 7a. Anti-slip coating;

[0098] 8. External imprints;

[0099] 9. Through drilling;

[0100] 10. Pipes;

[0101] 1. Interlocking;

[0102] 12. Arrows;

[0103] 13. Mixed line indicating the cutting plane.

[0104] The reference symbols inserted after the technical features mentioned in the claims are solely for the purpose of facilitating understanding of the latter and do not in any way limit their scope.

[0105] The invention is described above with reference to specific structures; it will be evident that it can be modified in numerous ways. These variations should not be considered a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all modifications that would be obvious to a person skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the invention.

Claims

AMENDED CLAIMS received by the International Bureau on February 26, 2026 (26.02.2026) 1) A wedge with indentations, a support for at least one metal pipeline forming a cradle for securing said pipe on a truck, wagon or stock, said cradle being in the form of a solid piece of wood with intermediate spaces delimiting at least one indentation (2) forming a support surface conforming to at least one-twelfth of the arc of the external surface of the pipe, the section (7) of the cradle for securing (1) corresponding to the load produced by said pipe, characterized in that it is formed of white softwood to avoid sticky sap dripping at the indentation (2). 2) A wedge with impressions, supporting at least one metal pipe, according to claim 1, characterized in that the white softwood is fir wood or spruce wood. 3) Imprint wedge, support for at least one metal pipe, according to claim 1, characterized in that the support is yellow tint obtained by sun-drying the support made of white softwood. 4) Imprint wedge, support for at least one metal pipe, according to claim 1, characterized in that the support is of a grey tint obtained by drying the support in the shade of white softwood. 5) Imprint wedge, support for at least one metal pipe, according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that it has at least one clean surface imprint made by saw forming on its upper face. 6) A wedge with indentations, supporting at least one metal pipe, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that its lower face is flat, being a bearing surface on the wagon or truck. 7) Imprint wedge, support for at least one metal pipe, according to the preceding claim characterized in that its underside has a non-slip plastic material coating. 8) A wedge with impressions, supporting at least one metal pipe, according to claim 6 characterized in that it has at the ends external impressions each comprising at least one hole going through from the upper face of the external impression to its lower face of the support. 9) A wedge with indentations, supporting at least one metal pipe, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the surface of the indentations (2) has a coating of non-slip plastic material, typically with a maximum thickness of 5 mm. 10) A wedge with impressions, supporting at least one metal pipe, according to any one of claims 1 to 5 characterized in that, being an intermediate support, it has impressions with a clean surface made by a saw forming on its upper and lower face allowing said support to be placed on pipes. 11) A wedge with indentations, supporting at least one metal pipe, according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the height of the bottom of the indentation from the bearing face on the truck does not exceed the width of said wedge, supporting wooden pipe, at a maximum height forming a square seen in cross-section, to avoid tipping during violent braking. 12) Assembly of supports with pipes according to claims 6 and 7, the assembly corresponding to a load, characterized in that the lower supports called base have a flat lower surface of contact with the wagon or truck and the intermediate supports have impressions on their upper faces for pipe supports and impressions on their lower faces for holding on pipes. 13) Assembly according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the pipes being stored, said assembly does not include a base wedge, the lower pipes being on the ground to allow handling by forklift. 14) Assembly according to the preceding claim, characterized in that, with the pipes being in a means of transport, truck or wagon, the assembly comprises in its lower part at least two base wedges and in its upper part pieces of wood of white softwoods with a flat upper surface forming a so-called square load. 15) Method for manufacturing a wedge with impressions forming cradles for shimming, having as its function the support of metal pipes according to any one of claims 1 to 11, shimming formed by at least two impressions (1) by a numerically controlled machine, characterized in that it comprises at least the following steps: creation of one or more reading planes by the machine corresponding to the impression (2) to be made corresponding to the load of said pipes (10); reading of the planes by the machine; conversion of the planes into numerical language; creation of cubic pieces in softwood; securing the wooden piece to a mobile table of sufficient size to support and move the wooden piece; selection of the machine work program adapted to the dimension of the impression (2);movement of the piece of wood along the trajectory of the imprint to be made determined by the machine's numerical language, passing a band saw held in the same plane during its operation and machining the imprint (2) corresponding to the trajectory calculated by a program; after machining, the table retracts away from the saw and the imprint block (1) just made; the table returns; the imprint block (1) formed in the piece of softwood is ejected; a new piece is placed and secured for the next machining cycle; the piece (1) is dried, giving it its color.

Images