Tadano AT for church renovation

The Liebfrauenkirche is part of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley UNESCO World Heritage Site. On the west tower, which was completed in 1351, the lightning conductor needed to be reconditioned and slate tiles needed to be replaced. The tower reaches a height of 76.30m, not including the cross.

Scherer Kran- und Bergungsdienst from Neuerkirch chose its ATF220G-5 for this job because of its boom length, compactness and lifting capacity. A man basket was also used for the roofing company team to perform the renovation.

When the crane arrived on site, it was set up quickly; despite the additional installation of a necessary 36m-long lattice boom extension, the renovations started the next day.

The man basket, with a dead weight of 280kg plus two to three people, was brought to the required height and guided around the tower for the work. In order to be able to access all sides of the tower from one crane location, a system length of 104m—including the lattice boom extension—was necessary. The other key figures in this demanding deployment: a maximum radius of 50m, a maximum lifting height of 85m and a counterweight of 71t.

Frank Lenz, owner of the commissioned roofing company, Lenz, from Niederburg said: “You don’t work at such a height in a man basket every day. But the crane operator, Peter Blatt, guided us delicately and safely around the tower.”

The use of a man basket was due to a risk assessment carried out beforehand, which suggested that this would be the least risky option due to the lack of space and the working height. For this job, the workers were also secured with climbing harnesses.