Testing of the main unit could be finished as early as the end of 2008. A second prototype is now assembled, and a third unit will be assembled in July for testing a new luffing jib attachment and superlift attachment.
The crane has been designed for transportability and ease of assembly and disassembly, Hitachi-Sumitomo international sales group manager Masaya Ito and senior engineer Akira Hanahara told Cranes Today at ConExpo.
The export version of the machine includes a self-assembly system to install sideframes and boom without a helper crane. Some counterweight will require a hundred-ton capacity helper crane. The heaviest transport component is 45t superstructure unit. The Japanese unit, with a preliminary title of 6000 SLX, does not have self-assembly systems to cut costs.
