Franz Bracht gets a boost
1 February 2017 by Sotiris KanarisFranz Bracht Kran-Vermietung mobilized its high capacity crane equipment including a Terex Superlift 3800 lattice boom crawler crane to install a number of wind turbines in the small town of Lüderitz, Germany.
As the wind turbines have a hub height of 149m, Franz Bracht crew members transported enough boom and jib components as well as superlift structure and counterweight to achieve the 165m boom configuration required for the turbine erection process.
The crawler crane was equipped with a new type of boom configuration and frame option that increased crane capacity and improved rigging efficiency.
Eric Jahn, crane operator for Franz Bracht, said: “With the new options, we can achieve a performance increase of 30%, meaning we get more lift capacity.”
Standing between Franz Bracht’s crews and turbine erection were curbstones, which forced crews to slightly adjust the lift plan on the Lüderitz application.
“The curbstones surrounded the wind turbine, which kept us from getting as close as we would have originally liked for the lift. However, the Boom Booster kit enabled us to erect the tower sections without a problem,” said Jahn.
The new Boom Booster kit increases the stiffness of the main boom by increasing boom width from the standard 3m to a width of 3.5m. Up to seven booster sections with 12m lengths can be installed on the crane’s main boom, allowing it to reach an impressive maximum hook height of 174m.
The boom kit comes standard with the Terex Cranes fall protection system, and its design allows two additional boom sections to “slide” into the Boom Booster kit during transportation to eliminate the need for at least one truckload.
“This can result in up to €1,000 in transportation savings, depending on the crane configuration,” said Guntram Jakobs, product marketing manager Terex Cranes.
