MSD Equipment specialises in the supply of construction material handling equipment to main contractors, house builders and ground workers. It is also the sole distributor for the north of England and Scotland for the ‘Conquip’ brand of block grabs, concrete skips and crane attachments.
According to MSD Equipment’s Managing Director, Steve Gaylor, “As part of our crane hire package, we have been cross hiring self-erecting tower cranes to our customers, but recognised the need to improve the quality of product on offer. We had found that these cranes were not ideal for our needs and often the reliability wasn’t as good as we would have liked. We decided to take a good look around to see what was available, so that we could purchase our own crane. This would ensure that our customers would get the very best product available in terms of reliability and operating efficiencies.
“We selected Vanson’s VC42 due to the quality of its engineering and its operational features which will give our customers the benefits of speed of operation, low operating costs and reduced handling costs. In particular we were impressed with its finish, which we felt was better than the other products we had looked at when we visited this year’s SED show. The way in which the mast, tie bars, struts and outriggers have been hot-galvanised will give this crane greater durability for hire use. At the same time its technical qualities and ease of operation had been very well thought out, which made it ideal for our crane hire operation. The operator’s radio control unit was also very impressive as it is of a high specification and includes a BS compliant load indicator on the driver’s lever controls.”
One of the features which MSD appreciated on this crane is the use of a 3/4 speed soft start system on the crane’s hoist, trolley and slew motions. This system produces a very smooth operation by effectively managing the steps between motor speeds to avoid abrupt speed changes. This technology enables the load to be positioned much more precisely and also creates a smooth hook action.
The VC range of self-erecting tower cranes offers the construction industry a compact and user friendly product that is well proven in the marketplace. Being self-contained it is able to improve material handling efficiencies, whilst also lowering operating costs on restricted development sites. Its capabilities have made it ideal for use in congested urban environments where it would normally be impractical for other types of lifting equipment to operate. Its simple, yet effective design has made it an extremely useful crane for hire fleet operations as it can work within a tight working envelope, thereby reducing both erection and dismantling costs.
The practical advantages associated with this range of self-erecting tower cranes, have been appreciated by developers who operate urban and even city development sites. It does a very efficient job and is able to place materials exactly where they are required, which saves a great deal of time and makes material storage and retrieval easier by keeping the site well organised. In doing so, it adds value by reducing wasteful contractor downtime and the need for double-handling which in term can reduce the number of labourers required on site.
The VC tower crane is designed to be completely self-contained, as it has incorporated a ballast handling derrick to avoid the requirement for third party lifting equipment. As a result it can be erected and dismantled using just two people. Another major operational advantage of this crane is that the jib is able to fold in half to avoid the crane violating other party’s airspace. Once erected, it is well suited to 3 and 4 storey construction work and has the added advantage of a minimal physical impact on the site, the company says
“As Vanson Cranes has been in the tower crane industry for a very long time,” said Steve, “and its MD Trevor Vanson is recognised for his superior knowledge of the market, we felt assured that his attention to detail at the development stage of this product would mean that the crane would be very well specified to suit our operational requirements. Perhaps just as importantly the professionalism and enthusiasm of the sales representative gave us confidence that we would get the level of back-up and after-sales service required from this company. So far they have delivered everything they have said, and on time.”
Vanson VC42 at work for MSD Equipment in the UK Vanson VC42 at work for MSD Equipment in the UK
