Manitowoc drives innovation in the lifting industry at CONEXPO 2017

The very latest in lifting technology is on show at the Manitowoc booth for this year’s CONEXPO, where the company is putting a collection of its newest products on display. A host of unique innovations from across the company’s range of crawler cranes, all-terrain cranes, rough-terrain cranes, boom trucks, tower cranes and self-erecting cranes underline the manufacturer’s pre-eminence across the spectrum of lifting applications.

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Barry Pennypacker, President and CEO of Manitowoc, said the company’s display at the event reflects its new direction as part of The Manitowoc Way.

“The Manitowoc booth is the premier destination in the Gold Lot at CONEXPO. Each of the cranes at our booth combines class-leading design and performance, as a result of key input from our customers in the development of our products. This underscores our long-standing commitment to innovation,” he said. “We are unveiling a number of cranes that should surprise and delight customers. As a company we’re committed to bringing greater velocity to our operations, and introducing new products more rapidly to improve the return on invested capital for our customers. Innovation and velocity are the primary drivers of The Manitowoc Way company culture, and CONEXPO is another opportunity for us to present that to the industry.”

Among the cranes the company is showing are the GMK5250L and the GMK5150L from the range of Grove all-terrain cranes. These two long-boom units are both appearing for the first time at a trade show in North America. Both models are mounted on five-axle carriers and—as their badges suggest—are notable for their boom lengths. The 70 m (230 ft) boom available on the 250 t (300 USt) GMK5250L and the 60 m (197 ft) boom available on the 150 t (175 USt) GMK5150L are the longest in each of their respective classes.

Both machines also feature a single engine, an innovative design concept pioneered by Grove in larger all-terrain cranes. The inclusion of only one engine delivers a number of benefits, including more flexible configurations for travel. This is especially useful for U.S. customers, who frequently have to adjust the transport configurations of their cranes when moving from state to state, or even from county to county.

Other Grove mobile cranes at CONEXPO 2017 include two new rough-terrain models: the 75 t (80 USt) GRT880 and the 50 t (55 USt) GRT655L, which are both being publically displayed in North America for the first time. Boasting new designs, which also feature on the company’s GRT8100, the GRT880 and GRT655L both incorporate Manitowoc’s Crane Control System, or CCS. All of Grove’s rough-terrain models are more reliable than ever before, thanks to the extensive product testing performed at the company’s unique Product Verification Center (in Shady Grove, Pa.) In this facility, each component undergoes extensive validation as part of the design process, to deliver better overall product performance from the finished crane.

The Manitowoc range of crawler cranes is represented by the MLC650—equipped with the VPC-MAX attachment for the first time at a tradeshow—and a new iteration of the MLC300 that features a fixed-position counterweight. For the Potain brand of cranes meanwhile, there are three machines on show: one new self-erecting crane, plus two top-slewing tower cranes. The self-erecting crane is the Hup 40-30 from the innovative range of machines that were unveiled in 2016. The unit is appearing at a major exhibition for the first time and its headline feature is the class-leading versatility and agility of a design that offers 16 different options for configuration. Technology features strongly, too, with the Hup 40-30 including a new remote control; Potain’s Smart Set Up software; and High Performance Lifting (HPL) winch technology.

The two Potain top-slewing cranes at CONEXPO have a strong technology focus also, primarily through their updated design that incorporates CCS. The MD 559 showcases how CCS technology has been incorporated into Potain’s line of high-capacity MD cranes. From the topless range of Potain cranes, the company is showing the MDT 219—the highest capacity model in the MDT CCS City tower range, which was introduced in 2016.

The inclusion of CCS in Potain tower cranes brings a number of advantages, including fast and easy set-up, which can be managed in as little as 15 minutes. The technology also offers closer management of lifting operations which in turn delivers greater capacities. Maintenance is easier thanks to the on-screen maintenance tool, while the usage of standardized components means spare parts are easily available.

National Crane is debuting the all-new NTC55, an evolved truck crane “replacement” that can maneuver into the tight working quarters typically reserved for a truck crane, but with the added features of a boom truck to increase versatility on the job site. The new model boasts a four-position outrigger system that gives the crane the reach and capacity of a 50 t (55 USt) boom truck when fully extended. In tighter working quarters, such as those found in urban environments, the NTC55 can retract its outriggers to 75% span to take up less space while maintaining greater capacity than competing truck cranes with similar footprints. A new hydraulically removable counterweight system, 80° max boom angle and a 20° tilting operators cab—a first for National Crane—further add to its operator-centric design.

In addition to showing numerous cranes, Manitowoc’s booth includes a host of displays and interactive exhibits related to a range of features and services, such as its Manitowoc Crane Care customer support program and Manitowoc Finance financing arm. The company can be found at Booth G3348 in the Gold Lot at CONEXPO 2017. The show takes place from March 7 to 11, 2017 at the Las Vegas Convention Center in the U.S.