GMK3060’s versatile boom angle options make the fit for Nestlé

• KRANprofis Allgäu’s Grove GMK3060 installs 21 m “stacker” cranes inside a warehouse owned by the global food and drink company, Nestlé.

• The GMK3060 was able to maneuver indoors thanks to its compact footprint and versatile jib.

• The estimated time for the job was cut from five days to four.

KRANprofis Allgäu had a challenge on its hands. A project at the Nestlé warehouse in Bavaria, Germany, called for the installation of 21 m “stacker” cranes, but the building’s ceiling only rose to 23 m, leaving very little room for a crane to maneuver. But the Pforzen, Germany–based rental company had a crane that could meet the project’s demands: the Grove GMK3060. 

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With the ability to lift at a 0° boom angle, but still provide enough capacity to lift the stacker cranes, the GMK3060 was able to maneuver indoors and lift them into place despite the low room overhead.  

Peter Völker, CEO of KRANprofis Allgäu, said that the GMK3060 not only had versatile features that enabled the project to be completed, including its telescoping 43 m boom, the 60 t crane also saved time over the course of the project.

“The challenge was to bring the stacker cranes from a horizontal position into a vertical one,” he explained. “Thanks to the GMK3060’s 1.8 m heavy-duty jib, we were able to achieve the lowest possible height between the luffing jib and the hook block, giving us enough headroom to make the lift. Normally, the main boom length means that the distance equals approximately 3 m, but we were able to reduce the length to 1.6 m with the jib, which was ideal for the confined spaces of the hall in the warehouse.”  

Additionally, the GMK3060’s overall length is less than 0.75 m, meaning that the carrier is also 1 m shorter than other machines in this segment. With the lowered suspension, KRANprofis Allgäu was able to maintain a headroom clearance of 3.54 m. 

The GMK3060’s six-section Megaform boom features the Boom Configuration Mode. This feature automatically selects the optimal boom configuration for a lift once the operator has entered the basic lift parameters. This saves time at the job site and makes the setup much easier. In fact, it saved Kranprofis Allgäu an entire day on the project. The estimated time for the job was initially five days, but thanks to the GMK3060, it only took four days to erect the stacker cranes. 

Founded in 1997, KRANprofis Allgäu GmbH is a leading crane provider across Germany. The company also offer contract lifting and transport services and operates a fleet of approximately 40 cranes.