SECTOR REPORT Ӏ TELE CRAWLERS
really efficient tele crawler with a 23.5m full power boom and tractor crawlers. It proved highly popular in Australia, Scandinavia, Benelux and Japan with some 250 sold during the 1970s. Next came the 18-US ton (16-tonne) capacity Mantis 3612 – a crane that redefined the ‘species’ with very compact dimensions and most especially the availability of an earth auger to meet the needs of the US utility industry. Key to the success of the 3612 were its sturdy heavy-duty construction and the inspired idea of Spandeck founder William Mitchell Snr. to develop the option of a rotary drill rig that could be folded against the boom for storage and allowed the cranes to bore holes for transmission towers. In addition, the crane’s compact travel dimensions of 8ft x 8ft (2.4m x 2.4m) width and height allowed it to travel into oil storage tanks and construct them from the inside out. From its introduction in 1983 for more than 20 years the 3612 was at the heart
An IHI CCH50T mini tele crawler owned by UK company Marsden Crane Services
of Spandeck’s business to such an extent that Grove was encouraged to develop a competitive model introduced in 1994 but which challenge proved both futile and very short-lived. Before the world fell in love with spider cranes, a substantial demand developed for mini crawler cranes with swing cabs – typically of around five tonnes capacity and 12m boom reach. Ideal for public works construction, tunnel work, etc these cranes were based on mini excavator frames and they too quickly established themselves in new applications such as subway construction and maintenance. The first model to gain a significant presence was IHI’s 4.9-tonne capacity CCH 50T, becoming a popular rental product in the UK, Japan, Australia, etc.
The 16-tonne Kato NK 160C
LIEBHERR’S GAME CHANGER Through the 1980s and 1990s a host of mid-sized cranes of 25 to 70-tonners vied for attention but generally did not cause mainstream customers to adopt the concept. The big game-changer arrived on the European market in 2006
and in some ways was a lucky accident. Liebherr Ehingen had been approached by an important customer who desired to augment their all terrain fleet with a single crawler crane that could travel beneath low bridges that were inaccessible for the taller four metre high all terrains. By combining their crawler skills with the upper of a 100-tonne all terrain, Liebherr was able to develop the first 100-tonne tele crawler – the LTR 1100. That crane quickly drew the attention of crane hirers and contractors alike around the world and by our estimates has now logged around 400 sales. For the first time, the LTR 1100
offered customers the choice of buying a 100-tonne tele crane on crawlers instead of being limited to buying cranes on long wheeled chassis. In addition, and just as significantly, it offered a much longer tele boom than any previously seen on a crawler crane – 52m (171ft). As exciting as this development was, in some quarters it was met with a fair degree of scepticism. The reason? Fear of boom bending and tip-overs! f
CRANES TODAY 23
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