LATTICE BOOMS Ӏ CRAWLER CRANES
innovation that allows the crane to achieve greater pick-up range in a narrow operating area.
GROWTH MARKET The wind energy sector is currently growing – not just in investment, but also in the size of the turbines used to harness power. As a result, bigger crawlers are being deployed. A crane from Chinese
manufacturer XCMG assisted the installation of another world record – this time the world’s longest wind turbine blade – in the city of Yingkou, in Liaoning Province in north-eastern China. In the city’s shipyard a
4,000t-capacity XGC88000 crawler with luffing jib – operated by XCMG subsidiary XCMG Crane – lifted an 18MW offshore wind turbine weighing almost 800 tonnes. With a hub centre of 145m and a blade tip height of almost 270m, the turbines produce 44kWh of power per revolution. The project wasn’t all about
lifting strength – it also required accuracy, to install the giant blades. Requiring the insertion of more than 170 bolts at a height of around 150m, the XGC88000 completed the task with support from auxiliary cranes. Heavy lifting and transport specialist Mammoet recently took delivery of its first Liebherr LR12500, which has a capacity of 2,500t and a 200m hook height. ‘Offshore wind turbine components are growing at a fast rate, with nacelles of 1,000t, tower sections of 2,000t, and jackets and monopiles of 3,000t in production,’ says the company. Higher-capacity cranes also
help to expediate other energy projects, adds Mammoet: ‘Energy projects in both the nuclear and oil and gas sectors will rely heavily on high-capacity lifting equipment to bring forward the date of first power, while increasing the cost-
CRANES TODAY 23
effectiveness of the build phase in the case of new construction, and reducing downtime in the case of turnaround projects.’ Wind energy is also receiving
investment in the USA. In Maine, for example, Manitowoc cranes being used to handle turbine components that the crane manufacturer describes as ‘massive’. The project, being overseen by Sprague Energy, will create enough onshore wind energy to power more than 62,000 homes across the state, with work due to have conclude in October. Sprague worked with local dealer Shawmut Equipment to source five Manitowoc crawlers: three MLC150s; one MLC250; and one MLC300 VPC-MAX – all of which performed up to 30 lifts each day. Loads ranged from 24.2 US tons to 101.4 tons, with some of the larger components – such as blades measuring up to 250 feet
long – requiring two cranes working in tandem.
The cranes were used to unload and transport the turbine components from vessels and rail off the coast of Searsport into holding yards, then on to trucks for transportation to a number of wind farms.
Also in the onshore wind sector XCMG’s
XGC88000 has lifted an 800 tonne offshore wind turbine in Yingkou, China
a Sany SCC13000TM crawler played a key role in erecting turbines in the Mangystau Region of Kazakhstan. The turbines have a tower height of 112m, with a 127t nacelle, 43t hub, and 30t blades. The crane, assisted by two
auxiliary STB1600T6 telecrawlers, was configured with a 126m main boom, 9m E-jib, and a total of 440t of additional counterweights, helping the crane to move components weighing up to 239t at a 20m radius. The wind farm is located around 75km from the city of Aktau,
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