We agree with the authors that all cranes can change over time and that the calibration of an LMI could have to be verified. And we agree that some manufacturers’ components may fail within the 10 year period.
This is where we diverge from agreement with him and would like to correct him regarding the verification of the system. Our user’s manual for the Maestro clearly states that the crane must be tested with a load before operation. It also provides a procedure for that testing.
If the crane’s mechanical behaviour would really change so much as the authors are saying, it would be necessary to recalibrate all old LMIs regularly, regardless of a Maestro replacement. But this is definitely not the case.
The Maestro is designed to upgrade almost the whole DS 50, DS 100, DS150 and DS 350 product families.
-Gregor Leuschen, PAT international product manager
