KNUCKLE BOOMS Ӏ FLOATING FLEET INTERVIEW
lifting operation. The remote control system provides real-time operational feedback, such as load percentage and crane status, enhancing decision-making and efficiency. Operators can see where the load is and visibility of what is being lifted and where it is being lifted to is better, meaning overall decision-making and efficiency is improved.
When did you get your first crane boat? RS: The Rothen Group is ten-years-old this year, and I’ve been here since day one, so ten years ago! In that time we have gone from six boats through to having over 200 boats in our fleet which, alongside our crane boats, include digger hoppers, pontoons, hoppers and more.
What are typical applications for these boat cranes? DH: Our crane boats are used for a wide variety of different applications but, typically, we are out on the waterways lifting lock gates out of the water when they’ve been damaged and need changing or installing sheet piles to repair collapsed banks on canals. We also hire our crane boats out for long-term projects. In these scenarios, they’ll be
hoisting construction materials, lifting equipment like diggers or other heavy machinery, and they can even be used as ‘man baskets’, similar to a cherry picker application.
What makes knuckle boom cranes particularly suited to your type of work (over, say, fixed straight booms or telescopic boom cranes?) DH: Flexibility and versatility. We think of them as the ‘Swiss army knife’, as they will do everything that other types of cranes will do but, unlike telescopic or fixed straight boom cranes, you can get a better angle of lift with knuckle boom cranes. You can work and pick up anything from anywhere within the radius of the crane and when you’re on tight canals and waterways that is a very specific advantage.
Do you or the crane manufacturers mount the cranes on the boats? RS: We will build and fabricate the boats first; then we mount the cranes to our boats ourselves. We do, however, work in collaboration with the crane manufacturers to ensure that everything is in accordance with their specifications.
Do you collaborate directly with the manufacturers on these installations? RS: We do, yes. To give an example, we will do a declaration with HMF to say that the crane is going on a static mount. Once the boat is fabricated and the crane is mounted, HMF will come out and do a Pre-Delivery Inspection (PDI), where it helps set up the crane and checks it’s all been mounted correctly. During the PDI we will run a load test in conjunction with HMF, where we lift 125% of the crane’s maximum capacity.
What particular considerations need to be taken into consideration when mounting a crane on a boat? RS: Stability is the main thing as we’re operating these crane boats from the water. We consider the weight of the vessel once the crane is installed, as that makes a big impact on stability. If you have a short, light boat then we can’t put a heavy crane on it as it just simply won’t be safe to operate.
Are customisations or modifications required to mount the cranes on the boat (as opposed to on a truck)? RS: Yes, all our cranes we order have to be modified so that they don’t have the support legs and associated ground bearing pressure sensors. As we operate our cranes via the water we use our own stability legs instead to secure the boat. Our crane boats are also designed to have the crane fold neatly into the deck, so that there is room to transport other items such as construction materials, helping with general logistics planning on projects.
Do any particular considerations need to be taken into account when using the cranes in a water environment as opposed to land based cranes? Are maintenance requirements the same or greater than land-based knuckle booms? DH: For cranes, the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (LOLER) stipulate that they should be checked once every six months when lifting people, but if not lifting people, then it is once every 12 months
48 CRANES TODAY
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