The 8million m2 project is set to cost approximately $11.5bn, making the Princess Nora Bint Abdul Rahman University one of the largest construction projects currently underway in the Middle East.

David Semple, managing director of Manitowoc cranes in the Middle East, said: “The cost, scale and prestige of this project all combine to make it one of the largest projects we have been involved with, both in the Middle East and worldwide. It is backed by the King of Saudi Arabia and is attracting a lot of attention.”

The university was launched by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia to empower women through education and employment, through a collaborative project by the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Higher Education.

Saudi Oger, Ltd., Saudi Binladin Group and El Seif Engineering and Contracting Co., are the three main contractors working on the project.

Construction began in February 2009 and is set for completion in mid 2011, although most tower cranes will not be required until late 2010.

April 2009 saw the arrival of the first Potain cranes; some were sold to Saudi Oger, with the remainder working under rental contracts. All were provided by NFT, the sole Potain supplier in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries. The firm holds a large fleet of tower cranes and serves construction projects across the Middle East.

Cranes currently being used include 17 MD 365s, 16 MDT 368s, 14 MC 310s and 11 MD 345s.

Managing partner at NFT, Nabi Al Zahlawi, said: “The main role for the tower cranes is to lift the largest building components. These include precast and hollow core blocks that make up the majority of the university’s buildings.

“The cranes are almost all working with full jibs, which range from 50m to 75m in length. Working heights are currently between 50m and 60m, but some cranes will climb to 80m as the project progresses.

“On a project this size and with this work schedule, it is important to have the confidence to fix any problems. While we have our own technicians permanently on site, we know that we can rely on the global support of Manitowoc Crane Care.”

The construction site covers 3million m2 and is committed to tight scheduling. Each building has at least four cranes working on it to keep the project to the timeframe.

The Grove mobile cranes on site are all terrain and rough terrain units, some of which are owned by contractors, and some rented for the project. The majority have been supplied through Yusuf Bin Ahmed Kanoo, Manitowoc’s dealer for Grove cranes in Saudi Arabia.

Regional manager for Kanoo’s Riyadh office, Deepak Jain, said: “Grove is an excellent brand for this kind of project. The rough terrain cranes are rugged and built for working in these conditions. The all terrain cranes have great mobility with Megatrak suspension and offer excellent lifting ability.”

Among the all terrain cranes that have worked on the project thus far are the 130 USt GMK5130, the 170 USt GMK5170, the 220 USt GMK5220 and the 300 USt GMK6300. From the rough terrain crane range the 35 USt RT540, 45 USt RT650, 55 USt RT760 and 120 USt RT9130 are among the models that have worked at the site.

In addition to the Grove mobile cranes, there are also some Manitowoc crawler cranes on the project, including the Model 8500 and Model 12000.

Once finished, the campus will include administration buildings, housing for 11,000 people, a 700-bed student hospital, 15 academic facilities, research centres and laboratories.

A high-tech transport system will link the campus using automatic and computer controlled vehicles.