Contractor Daelim ENC hired the crane from Chunjo Construction, South Korea’s largest rental company, for the expansion of the S-Oil facility in Ulsan.
As space was restricted on the job site due to existing infrastructure, the relatively small footprint of the 31000 — 336 sq m, compared to more than 1,200 sq m required by the crane’s closest competitor, said Manitowoc — proved advantageous.
The site also required the crane to operate from a road unsuitable for a wheeled or crawler-mounted counterweight, an issue addressed by the 31000’s Variable Position Counterweight suspended from the rear of the crane.
The crane was equipped with a 70m main boom and 964t of counterweight. Both lifts were made from the same position, carrying first an 800t reactor at a radius of 24m, then a 400t reactor at a 34m radius.
Jang Hwan Chang, chairman of Chunjo, said: "When we first spoke with Daelim there were several options being considered, but once the true difficulty of the lift work became apparent, the 31000 was a clear favourite and probably the only realistic option.
"These two lifts have been such as success that plant engineers at S-Oil are now looking at future expansion plans and designing larger modules that can take advantage of the 31000’s capabilities."
Chunjo is now transporting the 31000 to work on a project in Vietnam.
