Lightweight Service Crane Completes Innovative Installation on High-rise, Netherlands

By David Shaw

A high-rise building needed new covers installed over its hanging sheds that were high up on the side of the building. An innovative solution was devised using ALE’s specialist lightweight crane to complete the upgrades.

A large heavylift crane could not be used for the operation due to the compactness of other buildings in the area. After the client had become aware of ALE’s equipment capabilities, ALE’s engineers undertook close co-ordination with them for the project’s planning. ALE worked with the client’s individual requirements to engineer a specialist lifting solution that could overcome the project site’s limited space.

They conceived an innovative solution by constructing a lightweight crane on a moving installation that had originally been designed for a completely different purpose. This unique heavy lifting solution saved time and costs compared to the use of a traditional tower crane, while also minimising disruption to the local area.

On top of the building, ALE’s innovative Lightweight Service Crane was installed on a suspended gantry that was designed for cleaning windows. The Lightweight Service Crane is highly mobile and can be assembled by hand for lifts up to six feet in areas that are hard to reach. The lightweight crane’s modular construction enabled ALE to complete the operation swiftly as the crane could be installed quickly, with shorter mobilisation and demobilisation times.

Once the Lightweight Service Crane was in place, the gantry was moved on its rails and ALE installed each of the new covers one by one using the crane’s adjustable ballast and a vacuum grip system.

The upgraded covers will ensure the building’s hanging sheds continue to have efficient protection against the elements while providing essential storage for the building.

David Shaw can be reached at d.shaw@ale-heavylift.com