NOVEMBER 2022 Ӏ CRANE HISTORY


ANNIVERSARY


New competition in this size class comes from the 3,000-tonne capacity Liebherr LR 13000. This monster is the largest crane available on ‘conventional’ twin crawlers (as opposed to the two-sets of four crawlers of the Demag CC 8800-1 ‘TWIN’. With 4-5 LR 13000s already in service this crane – as well as its newly- announced 2,500-tonne LR 12500- 1.0 - seeks to build on Liebherr’s already dominant position in the heavy crawler crane league with its 1,000-tonne LR 11000 and 1,350-tonne LR 13500. Further emphasising its


j major structural changes in


the world’s crane and construction machinery industries. It would cause many in the US to feel that the days of America leading the world as a machinery supplier were over – that the steel and heavy industry of the future could only thrive in the Far East. Domestic US lattice crane


makers, already hurt from a decade of technological change to hydraulics, found themselves with no remaining markets and some 17 of 22 US lattice crane plants were closed from 1981 to 1985. Similarly, between 1981 and 1985 ten US manufacturers of telescopic cranes went out of business, unable to keep pace with the rapid technical developments. As the US recession and high dollar dragged on, US manufacturers moved production overseas. P&H closed its US plants and transferred production to Kobe Steel, its Japanese licensee. In 1984, Grove acquired Coles Cranes Ltd. of the UK out of receivership. Similarly recessions in France, Italy and Scandinavia saw numerous crane manufacturers close their doors. In 1981 Maschinoimport of the


USSR ordered 333 Liebherr truck and all terrain cranes, plus some


56 CRANES TODAY Liebherr sold 333 truck-


mounted cranes to Maschinoimport. The cranes were specified with cold-weather protection. For this Liebherr developed a three-element pre-heating circuit in the chassis


30 big Demags. The truck-mounted cranes were specified with cold- weather protection for -40C. Two further orders for some 40


large Liebherr cranes followed in 1983. During these years Liebherr placed increasing emphasis on its growing line of all terrains and, in 1987, introduced the 800t capacity LTM 1800.


During the 1970s and 1980s Mannesmann-Demag strengthened its position as leader in the market for high-capacity lattice cranes. In 1980 the company had set a new benchmark with its 800-tonne CC 4000 – soon surpassed by their CC 4800, and then, in 1996, by the 1600-tonne CC 12600. As global demand for super-heavy crawler cranes expanded, in 2001 Demag added the 1250-tonne CC 8800 which matured into the 1,600-tonne capacity CC 8800-1 and was then ‘literally’ doubled with the 2008 introduction of the CC 8800-1 TWIN. However, no discussion of


large crawler cranes could be complete without mention of the Lampson Transi-Lift. Originally designed by Neil F. Lampson in 1974 over the last 40- plus years Transi-Lifts have grown in size to 3,000 tons capacity.


technology in 1989 Liebherr unveiled its LICCON system for monitoring and controlling its mobile cranes. In 1990 the German economy was picking-up and Liebherr was awarded a contract for no less than 459 all terrain cranes from the German military. Markets for tower cranes across


the world opened up during the 1970s and 1980s.


In the early 1980s a new


‘variety’ – the City Crane emerged. This concept was quickly adopted by most European makers. They were distinguished by towers (masts) of reduced cross-section dimensions and their appeal was related to the congestion of urban construction sites where accidents due to collisions were becoming a serious issue. On the self-erecting crane front,


manufacturers were increasingly adopting hydraulic drives. By the 1990s the size and capacity of self-erectors had increased substantially. The largest cranes now offered 100 tonne-metres load moment or more and reaches extending past 50m and hook heights exceeding 40m. Able to handle work previously the domain of standard saddle jib cranes these versatile cranes continued to extend their applications and demand.


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