Tag: crawler crane

Crane service provider Felbermayr used a Liebherr LR 11000 crawler crane with Power Boom to erect a 6.2 megawatt wind turbine at an onshore test centre for off shore wind farms in Neuenwalde, Germany.

The 1,000 tonne capacity LR 11000 was set up in PDW3B configuration, which consists of 78 metre Power Boom, a 42 m derrick boom and a 66 m luffing jib. The counterweight consisted of 435 tonnes of suspended ballast, 50 tonnes of central ballast and 210 tonnes on the superstructure. Hook height was 138 m.

Five steel sections make up the turbine tower, each weighing up to 174 tonnes. Its hub height is 124 m. The lower section of the machine housing weighed 194 tonnes. Günther Wimmer, from Felbermayr’s project division, said, “This didn’t include the technical components, such as the transformer, gearbox and drive train, which weighed up to 73 tonnes each and had to be lifted into position separately.”

The turbine tower was fitted between September and November, while the assembly of the rotor took place in December 2014. The three rotor blades, which each measured 74.4 m long, were fitted onto the star-shaped head while on the ground. The total weight of the rotor was 175.4 tonnes. It was lifted to a height of 124 m and fitted onto the nacelle.

Wimmer said, “Once you think about the fact that the head is 152 metres in diameter, it soon becomes clear just how skilled the crane driver and assembly workers had to be.”

In total, 42 heavy transporters were used to transport the LR 11000 components to site. Wimmer said, “The crane came straight from being used on a construction site in Romania. After the initial leg on the road, the parts of the crane were loaded onto a cargo ship in Constanta and transported to Bremerhaven, Germany. The components were then shuttled to the construction site 42 kilometres away. It took four transport units six days to do it.”

Gillespies Crane Services in Australia added its first crawler crane to its crane rental fleet. It is a 350 tonne capacity Liebherr LR 1350/1 lattice boom model.

Commenting on his move into the crawler crane market, John Gillespie, Gillespies Crane Services managing director, told IC, “Our 1997 model Liebherr LTM 1400 was due for replacement and we wanted a larger capacity crane due to increasing client demands for us to make heavier lifts at longer radii. We considered all options with larger capacity all terrain cranes but our road regulations meant that this required removal of the boom and outriggers. We choose the LR 1350/1 for its excellent lifting capacity, compact dimensions, and its easy transportation and assembly on sites. We can assemble the crane in the same time as a large all terrain crane. The LR 1350/1 is now the largest lift capacity crane permanently based in Sydney.”

At the time of writing at the end of 2014 the new crawler was at work on the Barangaroo Project in Sydney. It was configured with 72 metres of S2 main boom with 27 m of derrick mast, 38 tonnes of belly counterweight, 125 tonnes of counterweight on the crane and 180 tonnes on the ballast tray.

The job required the lifting of Super T beams weighing 45 tonnes, plus 10 tonnes of rigging, for a total lift weight of 55 tonnes lifted to a radius of 54 m. At this radius the crane was well within its capacity of 69 tonnes, said Reg Eggleton, Gillespies Crane Services business development manager and heavy lift specialist.

Lend Lease Engineering, Gillespies’ client, was very happy with the outstanding capabilities and the performance of the crane and the operating crew, the crane company said.

Gillespies Crane Services has been in the mobile crane rental business for more than 60 years, since 1950, operating a fleet of road registered cranes that today includes all terrains, articulated cranes and city class rough terrains.

The first Liebherr LR 11000 to be fitted with a Power Boom attachment has gone to work in Germany.

The 1,000 tonne crane used the new P.Boom for the first time to place a large turbine house, weighing almost 220 tonnes onto a tower near Cuxhaven in North Germany.

The 6.2 MW pilot system was erected by Senvion (previously REpower) in the new test field for offshore wind turbines. Crane company Nolte decided to use a Liebherr LR 11000 crawler crane owned by Austrian based Felbermayr, while supplying the assist cranes from its own fleet.

The LR 11000 was shipped to Bremerhaven from the Romanian port of Konstanza after completing its first lift at a refinery near Bucharest. It was then transported to the site and fitted with the new boom.The crane was ready to start lifting seven days after its arrival on site. It was rigged with a hook height of 147 metres. Sections from the crane’s luffing jib are used within the double lattice section of the main power boom. The standard main boom sections are then used to create a heavy luffing jib. This configuration provides a 50 percent increase in critical lift capacities on the jib.

Klaus Ruhland, a Felbermayr project planner speaking of the lift, said: “Normally a 1,350 tonne Liebherr LR 11350 or a Terex CC 8800 would have been required for this lift. The 220 tonne load, had to be lifted to a height of 130 metres at a radius of 30 metres. Just for comparison, without the PowerBoom, it would only have been able to manage around 160 tonnes at this height and radius”.

The massive turbine is driven by a three blade rotor with a 152 metre diameter which was fully pre-assembled on the ground before being lifted into place.

The crane was rigged with 78 metres of Power Boom, a 66 metre luffing jib and a 42 metre derrick boom. A total of 590 tonnes of ballast was used, including a 50 tonne central counterweight, 220 tonnes of superstructure counterweight and a 320 tonne suspended counterweight.

Brazilian heavy lift and haulage company Guindastes Tatuapé has taken delivery of the first 220 tonne Liebherr LTR 1220 telescopic crawler crane in Brazil.

The LTR1220 features the same 60 metre boom found on the LTM 1220-5.2 All Terrain crane and is fitted with a 12.2 to 22.2 metre bi-fold swing-away, which can be extended further with two seven metre lattice sections. The crane has already worked on a number of projects and is currently erecting concrete beams for the construction of a new railway line at Guarulhos Airport in Sao Paolo.

Founded in 1960, the family owned company has a fleet of more than 100 – including four Liebherr LTM 1220-5.2 telescopic mobile cranes. It also offers heavy haulage services as well as a number of boom lifts and telehandlers.