Demag has extended the city crane concept to new limits with the launch of the compact 60t-capacity, nose-down styled AC 60. The four-axle crane will be shown for the first time at the Bauma show in April.
Demag says that the AC 60 has the most compact carrier in its class, which at 8.20m is less than even the three-axle Compact Truck models. (The 70t CT.3 carrier length is 8.66m, and its total length is 8.92m.) The AC 60 does have a slight boom overhang, though, unlike the Compact Trucks, giving it an overall length of a still remarkable 9.88m. It may not look pretty, but the dimensions are undoubtedly impressive. The eight section boom extends to 50m, and with the 13m extension, the maximum tip height is 63m, “another best-in-class value” says Demag.
With an engine rating of 295kW, the crane is fast, manoeuvrable and powerful both on site and on the road, Demag claims, and the standard all-wheel steering system with crab control gives the AC 60 the smallest turning radius of any 60-tonner on the market, the manufacturer adds.
All-wheel drive is offered as an option, and a two-seater cabin (in line, rather than side by side) is also available. The two-seater cabin is designed to satisfy union requirements of certain territories.
While long distance travel is against the concept of city cranes, this machine will be happy on the autobahn, motorway or freeway. A single cab is an ergonomic compromise, however, and the driver may not be able to go for as long as he or she could in a conventional cabin. Thus the option of the two-seater cab also helps here.
Also new at Bauma is a refreshed offering in the 300t class, just three years after the launch of the AC 300. Already it is time to renew it, apparently, and the new Demag AC 300-1 is being exhibited. This model “is more than just the successor to the familiar 300-tonner from Demag Mobile Cranes,” the company says. “The unit has been completely redesigned from the carrier to the main boom”.
It features 12 x 8 x 10 drive and steering, and one of the four driven axles is connectable as and when required. The 448kW DaimlerChrysler OM 502 LA engine offers a maximum torque of 2,700Nm, which means that the AC 300-1 can cope with inclines up to 41% and on the flat can reach speeds of 85km/h, Demag says.
The carrier frame has been redesigned to give more strength and torsion-resistance. This means significantly improved behaviour in all load situations, and – although the final chart was not available at time of writing – a 20% to 30% improvement in the load chart.
A 205kW engine powers the upper. A maximum of five hydraulic pumps (of which one is an auxiliary unit) provide four independent circuits, enabling four independent working motions to be performed simultaneously.
The four-section main boom reaches 56m. With a luffing jib, maximum working height is 131m. A fixed jib, a boom extension and the new Sideways Superlift (SSL) attachment are also available.
As well as these two new all-terrain models, Demag’s stand will also feature, from the all-terrain series, an AC 25, AC40-1, AC 50-1, AC 100, AC 200, and an AC 500-1 equipped with Sideways Superlift.
Demag is also showing a new 300t crawler, the CC 1800-1, which follows on from the CC 2800 and CC 2500 models. ‘Significant improvements’ in the speed and efficiency of all the working motions are claimed. The hoist unit, boom and swing gear can now operate at a 50% higher speed and the propulsive power of the crawlers has been increased by more than 15%.
A new crawler drive unit has been designed to minimise the risk of it getting clogged with earth and stones. A more spacious cabin has been added, with air conditioning and a camera system to monitor the winches, both as standard.
Absent from Bauma, unfortunately, is the next big beast in crawler crane development, the CC 8800 – a 1,000t capacity crawler from Demag that has been ordered by Marino Crane of the USA. This, it is claimed, is the most powerful lattice boom crawler crane in the world with a transport width of 3.5m. It has a maximum boom combination length of 216m and a maximum load moment with Superlift attachment of 20,150tm.
