Let's stay just a little longer Scandinavia. Linden, part Alimak since the mid-1970s, launched the 8000 crane system (picture 325). This modular construction system used standard tower and jib sections which were designed fit together exactly. According to company brochures, this meant the cranes could be assembled in 41272 different configurations. The Swedish cranes even looked good, elegant was a word sometimes used, and encompassed the 100 to 8000 tonne metres lifting range. Special technical features included a specially slung counterweight that absorbed nor mai operational vibrations and oscillations twenty thnes faster than convert tional static mounting methods. t@R n#(~"
Mobile cranes bread the 1000 tonnes barrier. At the beginning of the 1970s large crane rental companies were forming. Some of the better known, to name but a lew, included: Sparrows, Grayston and JD White in Britain (later to become one company); Bohne Group, Scholpp, Schmidbauer and Bodo Toense in Germany: and Stool, van Seumeren and van Twist in The Netherlands. These companies wanted heavy lift cranes built specially for them. An example of one such crane was the K 10000 built for the E ,ilJl\
Bremen based Bofine Group by Demag with the assistance of engineering firm Horst Vesper which was responsible for the structural drawings. Faun and Scheuerle built the chassis for this giant, RX{}
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The K 10000 could lift 1000 and had a load moment of more than 10 000 tonne metres (pictures 326, 327). The giant crane had a 121 metre main boom and could be equipped with a 105 metre luffing jib to give an incredible [look height of 203 metres ! One of the machine's first projects was to place the roof on the Olympic stadium in Munich. Leo Gottwald KG of Dtisseldorf, to use the company's official name, understand ably did not want to be left behind. ]Hl{(v\H O
In 1973, the same year as the portable television became widely available, the 125 tonne capacity AMK 155 telescopic crane was built. This generated huge interest among crane rental companies and in 1978 Gottwalcl followed on with its first real 'giant', the 200 tonne AMK 200 telescopic crane (picture 328). World trade was increasing rapidly and with it the growth of containerisation. As early as 1968 the first standardised 'super box' had reached Europe. Crane builders were now turning their attention to the rectangular boxes that were rapidly changing the face of international cargo transportation. As container transport grew, so did container ships, and this meant ever larger and more efficient cranes were needed. One of the largest mobile dockside cranes was Gottwald's HMK 360, which had an on-hook capa city of 120 tonnes at 26 metres radius or 44.4 tonnes at 53.5 metres radius. Dock side mobile cranes were often fitted with a diesel electric drive, but diesel-hydrau llc drive was also available and there was heated debate between major manufacturers such as Demag, Gottwald, Lieb herr, Reggiane, Italgru, FMC and others, on the exact advantages and disadvantages of the different drives. }oiNgs/N
The beginning of the 1970s saw companies such as Bantam, Coles, Demag, Gottwald, Grove, Tramac, K [ssbohrer, Pettibone, PPM, Krupp, MFL, Rheinstahl, Bucyrus Erie and Lorain leading the way in telescopic boom crane production. Models on offer ranged from the 14 tonne capacity Bantam S 626 to the 72.5 tonne capacity ' A+L
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Grove TM 800. As we have already seen mobile telescopic cranes were lifting 200 tonnes before the decade was out, and this barrier, too, was soon to be broken. In Germany, Faun dominated the market for crane carriers and in 1972 its 1000 unit was delivered. Model numbers now started with the prefix KF, standing for 'Kranfahrgestell' ('cranecarrier'). The biggest in the range was the KF 400.83/99 which was used with the large Demag TC cranes. All wheels, except for the fifth twin-tired front axle, were steerable. Transport weight was 96 tonnes and power came from a 530 horsepower diesel engine. By 1976 the range encompassed 14 models for all types of lattice boom and telescopic cranes. y:Gn58\o
The biggest of the carriers would soon be used by Demag, based at gweibrilcken near the border with France, as a base for the TC 800. Demag's heavy-duty lattice boom cranes were available in TC (truck crane) and CC (crawler crane) versions. The 100 tonne capacity TC 400 was produced in crawler crane form alongside the on-road model with its Faun chassis. Another important range of models were called lattice boom mobile cranes (MC), which were built tor loads of up to 140 tonnes at 4 metre radius (picture 329). Demag's majority shareholder had been Mannesmann since 1973, and this partnership contributed to rapid advances in crane technology. 5~UW=
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At the time of its launch in 1975, the 160 tonne capacity HC 500 (picture 330) was the largest telescopic crane in the world. From 1972 Demag had been building large mobile lattice boom cranes with capacities of 120 tonnes (TC 500) and 250 tonnes (TC 1200). The aso8,mpZuA
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800 tonne TC 4000 was mounted on a Faun chassis in 1978 and the first unit was delivered to the British crane rental.
