Spotlight Cranes

By Seth Skydel All-Terrain Cranes

“ These cranes are ideally suited for tower crane and cell tower erection, urban construction and general lifting applications,” Hamburg said.“ They also offer flexible transport configuration options, including quick connections for the main boom and outriggers and liftable third axles and dollies to comply with local road regulations.”

Andrew Soper, product manager for All-Terrain and Telescopic Truck Cranes at Link-Belt, pointed out that ATs are desirable for their ability to traverse difficult terrain.“ They’ re used in general construction work, cell tower assembly, heavy civil projects and on oil and gas production fields,” he said.“ Their substantial boom length and modular counterweight packages enable ATs to pick large and small loads in tight spaces or at long radii and still easily transport between multiple jobsites in a single day.”

According to Joshua Boyer, GMK application sales manager at Manitowoc Cranes, the demand for all-terrain cranes over 400 tons is rapidly increasing.“ One of the primary drivers is the rise in data center construction, which requires large AT cranes equipped with luffing attachments with a 300-foot plus radius if needed, to lift heavy chillers deep into roof systems,” he explained.“ Additionally, data centers are often built in close proximity to one another, making the small footprint and fast rigging of AT cranes ideal for these projects.

“ Wind tower erection and maintenance

Link-Belt continues to innovate its all-terrain product line with new models like the 225 | AT.

work with ATs is also growing year over year,” Boyer added.“ Many aging wind towers require component replacements and large all-terrain cranes can efficiently swap out blades and gearboxes due to high-capacity attachments. When installed on the main boom, these attachments can increase load chart capacities enabling high-capacity lifts on taller towers.”

New Models and Technologies

Link-Belt continues to innovate its AT product line, which includes the 175 | AT, 225 | AT and 300 | AT models powered by Cummins X15 engines coupled with ZF TRAXON transmissions.“ These machines feature our in-house-designed Pulse 2.0 RCL( Rated Capacity Limiter), Smart Stack counterweight detection, tire temperature and pressure monitoring and Link-Belt SmartFly systems, as well as a standard wireless rigging remote for operator efficiency,” Soper said.

“ Smart Stack allows the Pulse 2.0 system to confirm that the amount of counterweight input by the operator is correct, issuing a visual warning if the RCL system notes a mismatch,” Soper continued.“ The wireless rigging remote simplifies setup and teardown of the machine while also allowing fly erection to become a single-operator process. With it, an operator can control functions such as engine on / off, high / low idle, suspension, outrigger beam extension and auto leveling from the ground using only the remote.”

The Grove GMK6450-1 AT, an upgraded version of the manufacturer’ s GMK6400-1 model, has an increased maximum capacity rating of 500 tons. The six-axle AT features a 51- to 197-foot, five-section boom and can be fitted with an 82- to 259-foot luffing jib as well as carry 297,600 pounds of counterweight.“ The GMK6450-1 is particularly well suited to projects that require flexible set-up distances and the ability to lift heavy loads at steep vertical angles,” Boyer said.

Other features of the GMK6450-1 AT include the manufacturer’ s MAXbase system, which allows the use of asymmetrical outrigger setups that can increase lifting capacity by up to 70 % on the main boom and by up to 400 % when using the luffing jib. It can also be used with the capacity-increasing MegaWingLift self-rigging attachment, which eliminates the need for an assist crane.

The Grove Crane Control System( CCS)

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April 2025 • www. cranehotline. com