Industry Interview By Seth Skydel
Staying on Track
On the Glacial Drumlin State Trail project, Zenith Tech used the Tadano GTC-2000 for a variety of purposes, including lifting the bridge to get clearance underneath to drive pilings.
Helping Customers Choose the Right Crane for Each Job Ensures a Healthy Bottom Line
Why is it essential to choose the right crane for each job? The simplest answer to that question, according to Darren Reddekopp, VP of sales at Reynolds Equipment, is to keep the project schedule on track and to ensure a healthy bottom line for the contractor.
“ It is critical to select the right manufacturer and partner to keep your jobsite moving,” Reddekopp said.“ Productivity increases when a customer selects a crane that is reliable, and they have support from trained technicians if issues come up.”
Case in point, Reddekopp related, was a recent project by Zenith Tech, a Walbec Group Company based in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The job called for work on the 52-mile Glacial Drumlin State Trail that runs between Milwaukee and Madison. The project involved replacing failing piers under a pedestrian / bike bridge that was built on an old railroad bed.
“ We essentially had to build new piers to make the bridge safer but there was a
narrow path to the site, and we couldn’ t be on the bridge itself,” said Zenith Tech’ s Construction Manager Steve Firari.“ We had to think about the right equipment for the job.”
Those requirements, Firari related, included:
• A crane with enough capacity at radius to do the work yet also small enough to navigate the trail.
• A crane with the ability to walk approximately a quarter mile on the path and stay out of the tree canopy with low ground bearing pressure.
• On the site, a crane that could sit in one spot and have enough reach, capacity and power to pick up the beams, then swing the beams at about a 144-foot radius and drive them into the ground.
Making the Ideal Crane Choice
Working with Reynolds Equipment to rent the crane, Zenith Tech decided that the ideal choice of machine for the project was a Tadano GTC-2000. The 200-ton capacity telescopic boom crawler features an adjustable track width( from approximately 15 feet to 24 feet) in both symmetrical and asymmetrical configurations, so it can be used for applications with limited space. It also has low ground pressure for working on sensitive sites.
The Tadano dealer for Wisconsin and Michigan’ s Upper Peninsula delivered the self-erecting model, which comes in five loads, to a field adjacent to the trail where Zenith Tech personnel and a Reynolds Equipment technician worked to set it up.
On the Glacial Drumlin State Trail project, Zenith Tech used the Tadano GTC-2000 for a variety of purposes, including lifting the bridge to get clearance underneath to drive pilings.
“ We pulled the tracks in to walk the path, then put them back out to full width once we got to the pad that we built for it to sit on,” Firari related.“ We were also
24 CRANE HOT LINE ® July 2024 • www. cranehotline. com