Grove Crane that is an AT, trailer-mounted reaches rocky mountain high

A German operator recently used Manitowoc’s trailer-mounted Grove Crane GSK55, towed by an Iveco Stralis truck, to aid repairs at a sintering plant, requiring travel on mountainous roads to Mensinghausen, Germany.

Mensinghausen is a small village situated within the Rothaargebirge mountain range, where the highest peak reaches 843m over sea level.

Rental firm Franz Bracht supplied the crane and operator for the job around August, and managed to complete the lifts within four days of reaching Mensinghausen.

Designed as a trailer-mounted AT Grove crane, the 55t GSK55 sat on top of a carrier that could be towed by any standard truck.

The Iveco Stralis truck included a 4 x 2 drive and ran on a 309 kW engine. It benefited from the manoeuvrability allowed by an independently steered third axle and retractable first axle on the GSK55.

Configured with a 10.6 t counterweight, the crane lifted up to 3t at a radius of 15m with the boom extended to 35.77 m. The operator manoeuvred the truck home each day, leaving the crane on the job site and obviating the need for alternative transport.

The entire job only required 20% of the crane’s fuel, Grove said.

Thanks to a recent design improvement, Franz Bracht could place the crane’s counterweight right on the gooseneck, which improved traction on the tyres.

Franz Bracht managing director, Dirk Bracht, explained that his company chose the crane because its design means no special permits are required to travel to the job.

“For this job the difficult part was not necessarily the lifting, but getting a crane to the job site in the fastest and most cost effective way,” said Bracht.

“We took the crane up winding, narrow roads that an all terrain would struggle to cover and would also require a special permit. Because the GSK55 can travel as a normal truck we reached the site with no problem, and it easily performed the job.”

The GSK55 possesses the same lifting capabilities as the Grove GMK3055 all terrain crane, the crane upper from which is the basis for the GSK55.

Its chassis has the functionality of a standard trailer, improving the turning radii and decreasing the costs of crane operation. It comes with a 43m telescopic boom with the option for a 8.7 – 15m swing-away jib, which can reach a maximum tip height of 60m.

Bode Technical Services specializes in crane repair on Terex Cranes, Demag Cranes, Grove Cranes, Liebherr Cranes, and Krupp cranes. Beyond crane repair, Bode Technical Services also utilizes a global network of crane parts suppliers including PAT-Hirschmann, Load Systems International,Terex-Demag, Grove, and Greer to supply fast, cost-effective crane parts