Right from day one there was palpable excitement among exhibitors and visitors alike. The sun shone for most of the week and the rain stayed away until the last half hour of the last day. The feeling that maybe, just maybe, Bauma 2004 could represent some kind of sea change in the global economy did not seem so bizarre. Until, that is, reality kicks in and we remember that all major shows generate their own excitement – show fever. Of course Bauma was lively. It always is. There were 2,801 exhibitors, which was a 20% rise on the last Bauma in 2001. And it felt like visitor numbers had surely topped half a million for the first time this year. But it was not so. The organisers report that there were 410,000 trade visitors for Bauma 2004 – a new record, but just 0.01% up on the 406,000 in 2001 despite the addition of a new mining section. (Maybe people were tunnelling their way in…)
It was certainly a successful week for the industry, with great interest being shown by customers and some noteworthy orders being signed, but a sense of perspective must be retained.
What was noticeable was the high number of international visitors – 31% of the total, compared to 27% last time. They came, quite literally, from all over the world: 171 different countries, up from 157 last time.
Talking points
Among the favourite topics of discussion during the week was the rise in steel prices, caused by a leap in demand in China. In 2003, China consumed 260m tonnes of steel – 25% of the world market. The positive side of this, at least according to Jeff Brundell, president of the Crane Industry Council of Australia, is that the Australian crane industry is ‘steaming ahead’ because of the craneage needs of the iron ore and coal extraction industries, booming on the back of the steel shortage.
Favourite show rumour was that Terex was buying Spanish mobile crane manufacturer Luna – a rumour which Terex CEO Ron DeFeo did nothing to kill by responding at a press conference: ‘Good question – we’ll see what happens.’
Liebherr Ehingen’s new nomenclature was also a talking point. Liebherr’s new four-axle all terrain was originally promoted as the LTM 1080/2. Two weeks before its launch at Bauma it was renamed the LTM 1090-4 and given a 90t rating. According to Liebherr, customers insisted the crane had 20% or 30% more capacity than a regular 80 tonner. The trouble is that Liebherr launched a 90 tonner last year, the LTM 1090/3. So this has now been renamed the LTM 1000-4 and given a 100t rating. No work has been done on the crane to make it stronger to justify the change in headline capacity, but Liebherr claims that its customers rent it out as a 100 tonner anyway. The dash (as in -4) indicates the number of axles the machine has, following the same clear nomenclature as Tadano Faun. This is likely to be developed further with other new Liebherr ATs, instead of the slash (e.g. /2) which denotes the generation. Liebherr now offers two 100t capacity ATs – the LTM 1100/2 on five axles (launched in 2001) and the LTM 1100-4 on four. (Developments in the AT world will be explored more fully in our July issue.)
We like to think that the appearance at the show of the first issue Cranes Today China, the only Chinese language crane magazine, also made an impact. The Chinese presence, all round, was impressive. Puyuan (Zoomlion) and XCMG showed mobile cranes while Sichuan Changjiang Crane, Shenyang Building Machinery, Sichuan Changjiang Engineering and others all promoted their cranes from smaller booths.
By the end of the week there was only one talking point among the mobile crane community – Terex-Demag’s legal victory over Liebherr. Will it be the end of Liebherr’s Y-Guy and Grove’s Mega-Wing Lift lateral boom support systems, or will Terex strike a licensing deal? Or will Liebherr’s and Manitowoc’s lawyers find an escape route? (See News.)
Technology
One of the innovations of the show was Tadano’s Lift Adjuster – an anti-sway system for telescopic boom cranes that has been developed by Japanese and German (Faun) engineers working together. Development appears to have been prompted by concern among Japanese crane operators about using European-style flexible booms instead of traditional Japanese rigid ones. An operator unused to a long flexible boom is more likely to incur load sway. An operator concerned about load sway can switch on the Lift Adjuster function by pressing a button. The system works by sensing pressure in the hydraulic lifting cylinder and automatically making the same adjustments that a skilled operator would to reduce or eliminate sway.
One of the cutest ideas was displayed only as a concept on a mock-up video, but PAT promises that it could be a reality by next Bauma if enough excitement is generated. PAT showed footage of a crane that had the LMI read-out embedded into the windscreen of the crane cab, so that the operator does not have to look down and away from the load. The system shown was pure simulation – not even a prototype has been built – but it was the kind of imaginative thinking that companies should be demonstrating at trade fairs.
Other developments included Potain’s new frequency-controlled slewing drive, RVF Optima+, following Liebherr’s introduction of FR.tronic last year. In one of the Potain operating modes, tower crane operators can slow down by backpedalling. Back when the controls were mechanically linked to the engine, operators would turn the control in the opposite direction to force the engine to work to slow down the crane. From the operator’s point of view, this system appears to work the same way, though it controls the motor through a frequency inverter.
Danish loader crane manufacturer HMF showed its ECT 5075, a new load moment system for manual extensions, a requirement since last year of the EN 12999 standard. Other manufacturers already have their own solutions.
Inside the halls, component supplier ZF had a new, smaller version of its
AS-tronic mid automatic transmission for cranes on two or three axles. The device has 12 speeds and handles up to 1600Nm. It is similar but smaller and lighter than its bigger sibling, the 2700Nm AS-tronic. The transmission, available in two versions, will reach the market next year.
Dana has also launched three electronically-shifted powershift transmissions, the T15, T27 and T32.
Notable displays and new models
All the displays were notable, of course. Liebherr and Terex, right next door to each other, vied to see who could get the most metal into a limited space. Manitowoc Crane Group took the opposite approach and gave more space to walk between the machines, allowing visitors to stand back and actually look at the cranes. (Tadano’s display seemed to take the middle ground in this regard.) Banks of computer terminals inside the Manitowoc stand also allowed the various divisions of the company to make impressive presentations inside.
Demag’s new AC 55 city crane and its AC 250-1 (with its massive class-busting 80m main boom) were subject of much positive discussion. Liebherr’s machines also drew a lot of comment. There were novelties indeed: the LTC 1055 compact city crane; the LR1400/2-W crawler crane in Weldex colours, with its two slew rings and high centre of gravity; and the beast that is the LR 1750, a massive 750t truck-mounted lattice boom crane.
Also big in its class was Valla’s 100t capacity electric powered yard crane, the Valla 900A, owned by Luxembourg-based industrial movers TMB Industry. The firm, which has a total of four Vallas, bought the crane in January.
Most new models on show were detailed in the March issue’s preview feature, but omissions included Rigo’s RTT 1305, a five-axle 130t rated all terrain with a 58m main boom.
Grove had a surprise. As well as the previewed GMK 3055, the 55t AT with a 43m pinned boom, it is also displayed a 38m full-power boom version, called the 3050-1 and rated at 50t. This is in addition to the established 50t GMK 3050 that Grove says it will continue to produce. Grove has also changed the controls and the counterweight system on its GMK 4075. The 80t rating remains the same but the chart is improved and there is a greater choice of configurations, says Grove. With these changes comes a new name – the GMK 4075-1. Grove also announced its re-entry into the 130t class. The old GMK 5130 was dropped in 2001 after the 5100 came out. The new GMK 5130-1, out later this year, will have a six-section 60m pinned main boom and a maximum tip height of 89m with a full powered luffing jib. It will also have the new Grove controls and operating system (EKS 5 and ECOS).
There were various new knuckle booms on Effer’s stand, including the 1750 6S, which has six extensions, and the mid-sized 370.11.6S with Octopus Tech-Line. Not new, but always an impressive sight was the Effer 2200 CL 6S, the largest knuckle boom crane in the world. It was mounted on a DAF 4 truck.
Cormach showed an unusual 125tm loader crane, the 125000, sold to Spanish customer Sarcop. The crane has a divided, or twin, lower boom section and can be fitted with up to nine extensions.
Big loaders were also a theme of Amco Veba’s stand. The company claims that its new model 950 is the biggest crane in the world with rack and pinion rotation, thanks to ithe use of Weldox 900 steel. Following the trend in loaders these days, its second jib has a negative angle to improve access in tricky conditions, and a Danfoss PVG32 control valve and radio control. The SGS System doubles the speed of the hydraulic extensions. It also has a centralised lubrication system for easier and better maintenance.
PM’s stand showed loaders in the company’s new blue livery. New models include the 80 SP, which, like the 72 S, 30 SP, 27 S, 25SP and 23 S, comes with a Danfoss proportional control valve block and multi-function Scanreco radio control, a system for replacing the sliding pads without having to disassemble the booms and a double connecting rod mechanism for the first and second articulation for the maximum vertical lifting performance. It also has waterproof casing to protect the electronic equipment.
German manufacturer Böcker showed a couple of small mobile cranes with aluminium booms. The AK 32/1500 lifts a maximum of 1,500kg and can lift 250kg up to a hook height of 27.5m. The AK 41/6000 SPS, mounted on a 26t truck, has a 6t lifting capacity and has a maximum hook height of 41m. Both cranes have radio remote control as standard and by mounting a man basket they can be used as aerial access platforms.
Other must-see stands included Spierings (with its biggest ever display at a show), Palfinger, Kobelco, and the Japanese mini crawlers of Unic and Maeda, whose proximity seemed to reinforce their message that here is a concept worth looking at more than once.
Hitachi-Sumitomo gave visitors their first opportunity to see how the new partnership is implementing its philosophy of simple, modular, low maintenance machines. UK distributor NRC has the first two of the new 90 tonners to leave Japan and one of these was on show. The only other model to have been jointly developed so far is the 120t rated SCX 1200-2, but this was not shown. Instead was the old Sumitomo SCX 2500 with a newly developed European-style luffing jib. With the world lattice boom crawler crane market down from a peak of 2,500 a year to just 700 units last year, Hitachi-Sumitomo’s rationalisation is well justified. Features of the new machines that are being jointly developed include bigger cabs than before, flat windscreens, wet brakes like Kobelco uses to reduce maintenance and a modular approach so that the same base machine can be fitted with different engine, winch etc for different applications. The prototype of the third Hitachi-Sumitomo machine, the 70t SCX 700-2, is now being tested in Japan.
Hitachi-Sumitomo missed a trick, however, by not including Link-Belt, the US subsidiary of Sumitomo, on its stand. Instead Link-Belt took a booth inside the US pavilion in one of the halls.
Telescopic crawlers seemed to be a recurring theme at Bauma 2004, with Sennebogen and Italy’s TCM showing new models, and others such as Marchetti revealing plans in this department, but this topic will be covered in a special feature next month.
