Ness Crane Tackles Tilt-up Construction with New GMK7450

click to enlarge> Ness Crane's GMK7450 travels at highway speeds.

August 18, 2004 - Customers of Ness Crane Service, Seattle, Wash., have increased their job requirements in order to take advantage of the company's new 550-ton GMK7450 all-terrain crane. In its first few months of operation the crane has worked on such diverse projects as lifting a natural gas pumping station into position; installing bridge piers; helping load 190-ton pile driving rigs onto barges; and putting up (and taking down) very tall tower cranes. But it is tilt-up concrete construction that has dominated most of the new crane's time.

"As our customers learn that we have this heavy lift capacity, they are specifying larger concrete panels and tower cranes - or putting them further into buildings, knowing that there is now a lifting option that can cope with the increased requirements," said Larry Ness, vice president of Ness Crane Service. "We could see a trend for bigger lifts so we decided invest in the GMK7450. This was a major purchase for us but we have been pleasantly surprised by the level of machine utilization since we took delivery."

The Grove GMK7450 has a maximum main boom tip height of 207 feet, increasing to 410 feet with the luffing jib attached. The unit has a maximum working range of 263 feet but has numerous lifting options between 53 and 197 feet. The MEGAFORM boom is electronically controlled, hydraulically positioned, and mechanically pinned. The TWINLOCK boom telescoping system allows for pre-selection of 32 different main boom extension configurations.

Ness Crane's GMK7450 has traveled as far as 80 miles away to install a gas pipeline pumping station. According to Doug Sellers, Ness Crane's field man, "The GMK7450 is easily configured to meet road restrictions, making it versatile for travel. It gives excellent lift and reach along with fast road speeds, all wheel steering, great mobility and all terrain capabilities." Additionally, the crane's MEGATRAK suspension system features independent hydro-pneumatics with hydraulic lockout on all wheels. The suspension can be raised 6.5 inches or lowered 5 inches both longitudinally and transversely - and features an automatic leveling system for highway travel speeds.

Committed to increasing their tilt-up business, Ness Crane has volunteered to help trial any prototypes Grove may develop for tilt-up construction techniques using the GMK7450. And in the competitive West Coast crane rental market, the big AT crane is helping Ness Crane Services move from being a general taxi crane provider to being a heavy lift specialist.