Potain introduces its Chinese-made MCT 385
9 July 2012Potain has introduced its first Asian topless tower crane manufactured at its Zhangjiagang, China production facilities, the MCT 385, filling a gap in the company’s product lines available in Asia.
Lying between the firm's 16t MC 310 and its 25t MC 475 tower crane, Potain says its 20t MCT 385 is aimed squarely at regional demands but is also suited for work in other emerging markets.
A result of design collaboration between European and Asian Manitowoc engineers, Potain says the crane combines features facilitating streamlined assembly and transport with high-strength structural components, resulting in a strong load chart with a maximum load moment of almost 400tm.
Potain's MCT 385 uses a new narrow design for its mast sections that reduces the width of mast sections, available as 3.33m or 5m sections, to 2m, making it well suited to congested urban sites.
With these mast sections the crane can achieve a maximum freestanding height of 64.9m, and climbing the crane has been made somewhat easier as the hook height can be 50m above the last anchor points. Internal climbing is also possible.
As well as the flexible mast sections, special attention has been paid to the development of a new pin connection system, with some effort focused on streamlining the jib and counter-jib sections to aid easy assembly and transport.
Potain says that quick and easy maintenance was taken into account when locating the MCT 385's frequency-controlled hoisting, trolleying and slewing mechanisms, with safety also addressed by the inclusion of an independent safety line for riggers.
Having completed an eight-month period of structural and component testing prior to the crane's launch at the Zhangjiagang facility, eight MCT 385's have been placed with Potain partner organisations for final field trials, mainly in Singapore and Hong Kong.
Potain expects to make delivery of the first MCT 385 to be sold later this year.
Manitowoc product manager for tower cranes in the Asia-Pacific, Raymond Tang, said: "There is established value in the cranes we build in Asia that our customers appreciate. Producing a topless crane here gives customers another choice, and we're extremely pleased with the success of the crane so far."
