track mounted spider lifts tower cranes - vertikal.net · grove launches new trailer crane…new...

… Grove l aunches new t ra i l e r c rane…New Nano f rom Power Tower…Eazz i appo in t s R2 …

February 2009 Vol. 11 issue 1

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Track mounted Spider lifts

TowercranesTowercranes

Equipment for utilitiesBatteries

Track mounted Spider lifts

Equipment for utilities

February 2009 cranes & access 3

On the cover:

17 Spider lifts

Tower cranes

Utilities

A collection of Wolff lufffing cranes at dusk on a contract in Munich,Germany.

26

The March issue of Cranes & Access will feature:Electric Scissor lifts, Non-powered access

equipment, Mini cranes, Intermat preview and theARA review

Pasma Focus 55ALLMI Focus 57

Training 59IPAF Focus 61

Books & Models 62Your letters 63Innovations 67What’s on? 68

On-Line directory 72

33

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SUBSCRIBE ONLINE AT: www.vertikal.net/en/journal_subscription.phpBULK DISCOUNTS: These are available to companies wishing to takeout multiple subscriptions. Please contact the subscriptions managerfor more details. Tel: +44 (0)8707 740436 Fax:+44 (0)1295 768223E-mail: [email protected] & Bühne: The Vertikal Press also publishes a German magazinewhich deals with the same issues as Cranes & Access, but is writtenfor German users and buyers. Details available on request. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of informationpublished in Cranes & Access, the Editor and Publisher can acceptno responsibility for inaccuracies or omissions. Views expressed inarticles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect thoseof the Editor or Publisher. Material published in Cranes & Access isprotected under international copyright law and may not be reproducedwithout prior permission from the publishers.

c&acontents

Software 45Our semi-regular look at

what is happening in the rental software

market where hi-tec isincreasingly replacing paper.

John Fuller 47John Fuller - 'Genie John' to many - retired at

the end of 2008 after 25 years as UK salesmanager for Genie Industries, the aerial liftmanufacturer. John Fuller, this is your life.

ARA preview 50We preview the American Rental Associationannual convention and its Rental Show which

takes place in Atlanta early next month.

Directives update 53Peter Reed, director and technical officer with

PAC, the notified body sets out the differencesbetween normal use, predictable misuse andabuse of a product and the factors that must be taken into consideration by manufacturers

and fleet owners.

Comment 5News 6

Grove to launch trailer crane, Power Towerlaunches Nano, Youngman introduces

scissor lift, UK announces official tower crane register, Tadano buys Spandeck-Mantis, MEC

launches Speed Level, Liebherr breaksground in Russia, Bravi UK distributes

new push around lift, Eazzi appointsR2, 1,600 tonne Terex Demag, UK's

7,000th Merlo, New boom fromHaulotte, Bluelift and Skyjack part

company.

Spider lifts17Track mounted spider lifts have grown steadily in

popularity in recent years and look set tobecome a major product sector particularly

internal and external maintenance, repairs todomestic housing and small commercial

buildings, forestry and utility work. Mark

Darwin looks at the market and the latest

product developments.

Tower cranes 26Tower cranes have unfortunately been the

centre of attention for all the wrong reasons over the past couple of years. We take look at why

tower crane safety is still a major issue as wellas well as looking at the latest products

and developments.

Equipment for Utilities 33

Last year the HSE told utility companies that thedays of climbing poles and towers were

numbered given the arrival of powered accesssolutions that can reach

even the most remotelocations. We look at

various forms of equipment available forisolated locations along

with some routine tasks that have been converted from climbing to powered access.

Batteries 41Our annual look at the battery market focuses thisyear on the financial benefits

of properly looking after battery packs as well as

looking at the latest rules covering storage and the

recycling of lead acid batteries.

In the next C&A

regulars


Leadership needed on ratesThe vast majority of cranes, aerial liftsand telehandlers are rented rather thanpurchased - by far the most efficient

way for users to source this specialist equipment. The problem isthat as most rentals are short term with no contracted duration itleads to wild fluctuations in rates and availability that benefits noone over the long term.

Whatever the equipment, the rental cost as a percentage of a typical project is usually minimal. So any saving in the rental rate,assuming of course that you are not being totally 'gouged', is completely insignificant when compared to the risk and disruptionthat changing equipment supplier can cause. Far more costly are the extra delivery/collection and familiarisation costs along withinevitable errors, not to mention the repeated off-hiring of equipmentwhen it is not needed for a few days. The few pounds saved on thelifting equipment, quickly pales into insignificance compared to thecost of keeping skilled tradesmen hanging around when there are notenough lifts, or when the re-delivery of an off-hired machine is late.

American contractors know this well and tend to agree a deal for allthe access equipment and most of the cranes for the duration of thejob, with rent paid monthly rather than weekly. Almost any study oftwo similar projects built on different sides of the Atlantic, highlightsthe significantly higher efficiency of our North American cousins. All too often the largest single factor is the better use of accessequipment in the USA.

When times get tougher, more pressure is applied to rental companies, too many of which capitulate based on the anecdotalinformation that someone else has undercut them. Try that line withan airline or a car hirer, who while varying their 'walk-in' ratesaccording to demand and competition, maintain a strong disciplinetied into a specific yield strategy.

In the UK, a small number of companies in both the crane and powered access markets control a substantial portion of the totalfleet. Given that lack of finance is limits rapid expansion by upstarts,if those largest companies set an example and led the market ratherthan followed, rates are likely to retain some stability which if continued over the longer term will be better for hirer and user alike - not to mention the manufacturer.

Mark Darwin

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Design & Artwork by:bp design Ltd.

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ISSN: 1467-0852

© Copyright The Vertikal Press Limited 2009

Editors:Leigh Sparrow

Mark Darwin

Associate Editors:Rüdiger Kopf (Freiburg)

Alexander Ochs (Freiburg)Andrew Klinaichev (Moscow)

Sales & customer support:Pam Penny

Karlheinz Kopp

Production:Nicole Engesser

Publisher:Leigh Sparrow

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cranes&access

The Vertikal Press also publishes:

For users & buyers of lifting equipment

c&acomment

February 2009 Vol. 11 issue 1

Californian-based aerial lift manufacturer, MEC has launchedseveral new products, including arange of sigma type Speed Levels -based heavily on the UpRightSpeed Level, which is also builtunder the Snorkel brand. The company says that it has taken the overall concept and improvedon it, following customer requeststo produce such a product.

The MEC version has a higher liftcapacity, a greater levelling rangeand mid deck support intended toeliminate any 'diving board' flex. Theproduct will be available with 26ftand 30ft platform heights and most

interesting of all, a battery electric4x4 version.

The company has provocativelyadopted the Speed Level name for its new offering, on the basisthat UpRight no longer has it registered, while the patent expired a couple of years ago.Other new products on display at the World of Concrete in LasVegas included the company'slargest scissor lift to date, theUltra-Deck 5492RT, with 54ft platform height, four wheel driveand 680kg lift capacity. A dual roll-out Super Deck will also beavailable, as will a 44ft model.

New MEC's includeSpeed Level

Grove to launchtrailer crane

6 cranes & access February 2009

news c&a

Cracknell and Guillauxmove up at JLGJLG Europe has restructured its sales and service organisation which has resulted in additional responsibilities for Simon Cracknell of JLG UK and Laurent Guillaux of JLG France.

Cracknell becomes senior director sales and customersupport Northern Europe, responsible for the sales andservice organisations in the UK and Ireland, Nordic countries and Germany. While Guillaux has beenappointed senior director sales and customer supportSouthern Europe, responsible for the sales and serviceorganisations in France, Spain and Italy in addition to being in charge of industrial sales throughout the region.

Manitowoc is to unveil several innovative new products at Intermat inParis this April including a highly unusual trailer crane aimed at Europeand emerging markets such as Russia. The 55 tonne capacity GSK55merges the superstructure from Grove's GMK3055 All Terrain crane witha specially-designed chassis that acts as a semi trailer. Customers canuse a tractor unit of their choice to haul the crane to the jobsite. Thenew crane will be both less expensive and have lower running coststhan that of an All Terrain, while boasting axle loads of just nine tonneseven when equipped with full 11.6 tonnes of counterweight.

The load chart of the new model will match that of the GMK3055, with amaximum capacity of 55 tonnes and 43 metre main boom. An optional 8.7to 15 metre swingaway jib is also available, taking the maximum tip heightto 60 metres.

Other new products will include an upgraded version ofGrove's best selling AT, the five axle GMK5110-1;CraneStar, an all-new integrated telematics andcrane management system with both GSMand satellite connections, the rangetopping Potain MDT368, itslargest city crane to dateand the IGO30 selferector.

The new Grove GSK55 will be unveiled at Intermat.

Tadano buys MantisTadano, the Japanese-based crane manufacturer, has purchased

Spandeck Mantis, the US-based telescopic crawler crane manufacturer for a total of $37.5 million, including $8.66 million

of debt. The transaction was completed on November 30th.

Mantis was owned by the Mitchell family, with chairman BillMitchell senior owning a controlling interest. The company

Spandeck Inc, which was founded in it present form in1985, has a facility in Franklin, Tennessee and a plant

in Richlands, Virginia. The company has assets of justunder $23 million and generated revenues of just

over $34 million in fiscal 2007, with net income of $2.69 million.

Tadano says that the deal is part of its strategyto diversify its lifting equipment business and

will have minimal impact on its full yearresults to the end of March 2009. Tadano

America president, Kenichi Sawada, hasbeen named representative director and

president. The current executivemanagement team will remain

with the business, includingchief executive Bill Mitchellwho owned 12.5 percent ofthe company's equity.

Mantis produces heavy duty telescopiccrawler cranes.

Among MEC's new products is a Speed Level

SimonCracknell

LaurentGuillaux


newsc&a

SGB pulls out of aerial lifts in the UKSGB has announced that it is selling its UK aerial lift fleet in order to concentrate on its other scaffold and mast climber business. Employeeswere given final notice in mid January with a six week close downperiod. The company will continue to offer the rental of aerial lifts, butwill cross hire the equipment from strategic partnerships with otherrental companies. SGB was 12th in the Cranes&Access Top 30 UK/Irishpowered access rental companies last year with 400 booms, 450 scissors and 120 push around lifts.

SGB remains a major participant in the UK mast climbing market and in theDutch powered access market both of which are unaffected by this move.

The 4,300 tonne ALE SK90 cranehas carried out its first commerciallift at a Saudi Kayan petrochemicalplant in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. Themassive lifting machine was usedto lift a 69 metre long depropanisercolumn weighing 755 tonnes at 84 metres radius with 130 metresof main boom. The SK90 allowedengineers to complete foundationsand pipe racks in advance of column installation.

Tanfield - owner of UpRight, Snorkel and SEV Electric Vehicles - is working with private investors to establish private company SmithElectric Vehicles US Corporation in which it will own a 49 percent stake.Tanfield will then grant the new company a licence for the North Americanintellectual property rights relating to the production of its Smith productrange to SEV US, which will pay a per-vehicle royalty fee based on the salesprice of each commercial vehicle with an initial advance of £1m. Tanfieldwill retain responsibility for design and intellectual property development.The company will also work with Ford to introduce a battery-electric lightvan, based on the European-designed Ford Transit Connect, which goes onsale in North America later this year. Tanfield will manufacture a limitednumber of the vehicles in North America during 2010, with future production ramping up in line with customer demand. The vehicles will befully branded as a Ford product and sold through selected Ford dealerships.

Tanfield forms alliances in USA

...And new BossTower systemYoungman has also unveiled the BossEvolution, a new generation, fully compatibleBoss tower that uses welded tube to tubeconstruction, rather than welded T-joints tocreate a stronger lighter structure that is less expensive to manufacture. The companyhas made a substantial investment in state-of-the-art laser-cutting and roboticwelding technology in order to carry outautomated tube to tube welding withoutresorting to using heavy wall tubing.

The ALE SK90 completes its first commercial lift - 755 tonnes

at 84 metres.

UK tower crane register gets the go aheadThe UK Health & Safety Executive has decided to go ahead with an official register of tower cranes. The register will initially be voluntary but could become mandatory at a later date. It will containa variety of information including the crane make, model, location,managing organisation and owner. The records will probably beretained at the Health & Safety Laboratory in Derbyshire.

Colin Wood, the head of the UK Construction Plant-hire Association (CPA) said: “We will totally support this move if it gives confidence to the general public and extra statutory paperwork can be avoided.”

Youngman adds powerYoungman, the UK's largest alloy tower producer, has unveiled a new push around scissor lift, the Boss X3 with a maximum platform height of 2.55 metres (8.4ft ) giving aworking height of up to 4.5 metres, comparablewith the Pop-Up+ and Eazzi Lift Midi.

The Boss X3 incorporates an overload cut-out, tilt alarm cut-out and a platform descent interruptswitch set at 1.85 metres, similar to that found on most self propelled scissor lifts. The new lift has a good sized platform at 565mm x 1050mmand takes just 12 seconds to reach full height. The battery powered lift has enough power in each charge to carry out 225 full lift cycles andweighs 347kg. Youngman is teaming up with APS to help distribute and support the productthroughout the UK.

Youngman BossX3. The new BossEvolution tower

Tanfield forms alliances in USA

First job forALE


news c&a

JCB has launched a new pickand carry mobile tractor type

crane dubbed the Liftall, on theIndian market. The heavy duty machine will be built by JCB India andinitially marketed in Central & South India.

The new crane follows a classic tractor crane concept popular in both Indiaand Australia. Features include a heavy-duty, three-section boom which provides a maximum under hook height of 12.5 metres and a clear horizontaloutreach of 10.2 metres. JCB says that unlike some products of this type,the Liftall has a robust structure, outstanding engine performance and acomfortable and safe operators cab.

Aichi has begun shipping its new38ft and 45ft crawler mounted,straight telescopic booms first seenat APEX in September. The newmodels, one with jib and one without, are designated the SR12Cand SR14CJ. The new models usethe superstructure from the company's SP12C and SP14CJwheeled self propelled boomswhich were launched 12 monthsago. The superstructures aremounted to an improved version of

Aichi's well-proven crawler chassis.The 12C offers a maximum workheight of 13.7 metres with up to10.7metre outreach, while the 14CJhas a 15.6 metre working heightand 12.6 metres of outreach. Theuse of a three section, rather thanthe usual two section boom on thisheight, means that the two unitsretract to very compact dimensionfor storage and shipping. The UK/Ireland launch will be held atVertikal Days, 24 and 25 June.

The JCB Liftall crane

TheJCB

crane

Vertikal.Net posts new recordsVertikal.Net achieved new readership records in January in terms of total visitors, pages viewed and bandwidth consumed.

Sponsor Till's moustache for a good causeJonathan Till, of GT Access is participating in a moustache growing competition aimed at raising money to help fight testicular cancer.

New record for IPAFIPAF issued 81,378 PAL Cards (Powered Access Licences) in 2008, a new record.

Eazzi appoints R2Eazzi Lifts, the UK-based manufacturer of push around scissor lifts, hasappointed R2 Access as its UK distributor. R2 Access was founded lastyear by Russell Rowley to support UK ManiAccess sales efforts andwill work closely with a number of local or regional companies actingas dealers for the Eazzi Lift product such as Kermco, Southern Plant,Darren Sutton and Access Platforms Direct.

R2 has purchased a quantity of the Eazzi Lift Mini and Midimodels to kick off its demon-stration programme and tohave units available for immediate delivery.

Eazzi has also confirmed thatMike Wishart will head thecompany as managing directorwhile Martin Birbeck is salesand marketing director.

Hi-Reach boostsLondon presenceHi-Reach Access, one of the UK's largest aerial lift rental companies, has expanded itsLondon Thames Gateway depot, effectivelydoubling the size of the location which, inaddition to supporting its on-site Olympic ParkService Centre, serves as the logistics hub forall of the company's major London projects.

The service support team has also beenstrengthened with the addition of a number of experienced service engineers, while CatBrawn has been promoted the position ofdepot manager. Hi-Reach has also taken delivery this week of an additional three 135ft Genie Z135 boom lifts, takingits fleet of big articulated diesel booms to more than 100 units.

Terex terminates Fantuzzi dealTerex has told Fantuzzi that it has terminated its plan to acquire the group'sport equipment business. In November Terex informed Fantuzzi that it“believed that a material adverse change may exist with respect to theFantuzzi business or other grounds existed which may preclude completion ofthis acquisition.” It requested Fantuzzi to provide additional information. Thefailure to deliver the requested information gave Terex the opportunity to walkaway from a deal, which in the current climate looked less than attractive.

IPS to support Hanix productsIndependent Parts and Service (IPS) the UK-basedinternational replacement parts and service supplier,has been appointed as national service provider forthe entire Hanix product range in the UK. TheJapanese manufacturer - formerly Nissan Kizai - isbest known for its brand of mini excavators but islaunching the Nagano range of crawler mountedarticulated boom lifts in the UK this month wherethey will be marketed as Hanix products.

Going forward, Hanix customers will receive all of their after sales supportfrom IPS, including warranty back-up, genuine Hanix parts supply, servicingand technical advice.

Three newGenie Z15/70delivered to Hi-ReachAccess earlierthis month

the new Aichi AR14CJ.

Aichi's new crawler boom ready

Mike Wishart, Russell Rowley and Martin Birbeck

Cranes and access leadersFour UK crane and access companies have made it into the UK's

top 100 fastest growing private equity backed businesses for

2009. Published in the Sunday Times it measures EBITDA growth

- over the past two years.

Leading the four in 41st position is Wakefield-based rental companyAFI-Uplift, the Wakefield-based aerial lift rental company, with revenues of over £31 million, while EBITDA was £13.7 million, anincrease of over 51 percent in two years.

Close behind AFI, in 46th place is Ainscough Crane Hire which posted EBITDA of £43.4 million last year, up 49 percent in the twoyear period. The company had revenues of almost £133 million andruns a fleet of 520 cranes.

The third company is Aberdeen-based offshore crane and servicescompany Energy Cranes which was 75th. And finally the SpecialistHire Group in 91st place. The company owns Marsden Crane hire,Jardines Crane hire and added Telford Crane Hire last year. The grouphas revenues of £23.5 million and profits of £4.7 million up 31.6 percent in the period.


newsc&a

The International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) has produced guidance notes for second party (in house) inspection bodies thatcarry out periodic in-service inspections - Thorough Examinations - of aerial lifts. The guidance notes can be downloaded from thePublications/Technical Guidance section of www.ipaf.org

AFI-Uplift has relocated itsWakefield depot to larger premises. The new location inPope Street at the heart ofWakefield Europort in Normanton,is twice the size of the company's previous depot.

The new, purpose-built premises has over 1,200 square metres (13,000 sq ft) of workshop space, plus 1,500square metres (16,000sq ft) of office space, including two fully equippedtraining areas. The depot has a fleet of over 360 lifts with 14 staff.

Power Tower NanoUK-based Power Towers has launched two new push-around lifts using a telescopic mast lift mechanism giving working heights of 3.8 and 4.5 metres.

The lifts join the original sigma lift Power Tower which tops the push around scissor lift sector in terms of height and

platform rigidity.

The company says that the mast provides a lower closed platform height - just 360mm for easy platform entry, whileproviding a decent sized 1,000mm x 700mm platform on a machine with a working footprint of just 1,195mm x 750mm.

The Nano is capable of over 230 lift cycles from a single battery charge and uses a single, multi-stage hydrauliccylinder for elevation.The Power Tower Nano has

working heights to 4.5 metres.

New guidance for thorough examinations

New premises for AFI

AFI's new premises in

Wakefield


news c&a

Height for Hireon the moveDublin-based international sales and rental company, Height forHire, which trades as Easi UpLifts outside of Ireland, has movedinto new hi-tech premises some 15 minutes from Dublin airport.The new premises have almost 5,000 square metres(50,000sqft) of space under roof, located on a four acre site.

Bravi UK is to distribute the Eddierange of push-around lifts built in the UK by Edmolift, the scissor lifttable manufacturer. Bravi UK saysthat the four model range will complement the Bravisol self propelled lifts that it also distributes.

The Eddie lifts are built to a high specification and finish with detailssuch as platform corner mountedwheels to protect wall finishes anddual entry gates.

The latest product, the Eddie lift Duooffers a 3.3 metre working height and uses a slender, fully enclosed mast with a one man platform and can be converted in minutes to a material lift. The unit is lightweight at just 118kg making it an ideal unit fora wide range of jobs in offices and shops replacing traditional step ladders.

A slightly higher version, the Eddie lift Duo+ offers a 3.6 metre workingheight and weighs 132kg.

Bradfords buys more Terex Yeovil-based William Bradford & Sons - the UK's oldest chain ofbuilder's merchants founded in 1770 - has taken delivery of nine new Terex loader cranes taking its Terex fleet to 75 units.

The Bradford crane fleet ranges from the 6.5 tonne/metre 65.2 through tothe 19 tonne/metre 190.2. However over 80 percent of the fleet is madeup of 92.2 and 3008.2 models. Most of the cranes are mounted in the traditional ‘behind the cab’ position.

The company has two subsidiaries, Bradford Building Supplies coveringthe South West and Bradford Timber Supplies which operates nationally.According to group transport manager, John Ponsillo, the attraction toTerex Atlas was its “fast responsive service and good value for money.”

New push arounds from Bravi UK

Bravi UK is distributing the Eddie range of push around lifts

William Bradford & Sonshas ordered nine new Terex

loader cranes Bravi UK is distributing the Eddie range of push around lifts

Terex has unveiled its new 1,600 tonne capacityDemag CC9800 crawlercrane, at its facility inZweibruecken, Germany.Two CC9800s have alreadybeen sold, one to Sarensand one to wind turbinecompany Enercon. Thenew model is adaptedfrom the Terex DemagCC8800-1 and uses thesame basic componentsas its bigger brother, the3,200 tonne capacity CC8800-1 Twin.

A wider boom with components up to fourmetres provides a higher maximum load moment rating of 27,000 tonne/metres, when configuredwith 800 tonnes of Superlift counterweight at a 30 metre radius.

Maximum boom and jib lengths are 156 and 120 metres respectively, with the maximum combination being 108 plus 120 metres, resulting in a maximum hook height of 230 metres. The crane can also take 375 tonnes to a hook height of 147 metres - ideal for turbine work.

Redditch-based Ladybird Crane Hire has taken delivery of the first 'Gapo'self propelled transport system for tower cranes in the UK. Developed andbuilt in Italy, the unit has been designed for moving self erecting towercranes into position during installation and dismantling process.

Ladybird will use the Gapo with its fleet of 75 cranes as well as renting itout to other hirers and users. Although prices have not yet been fixed, the

unit plus operator will cost in the regionof £1,000-1,200 per contract.

An open day at Ladybird's head officein Redditch last month created a gooddeal of interest. The Gapo has alreadyproved its worth, manouvering cranesinto positions previously inaccessiblewithout a mobile crane, saving the customer money, while improvingspeed, efficiency and safety.


New 1,600 tonne Demag

Merlo UK has delivered its7,000th telehandler 15 yearsafter it began importing the brightgreen Italian-built machines.

The unit, a 25 metre Roto 40.25MCSS was delivered to GT Liftingsolutions of Lancing, West Sussex.GT's 18th Roto, it was supplied byEast London Merlo dealer CBL.

GT's managing director, GrahamTrundell, said: “This is our eighth25 metre Roto and demand is continuing in comparison to the

house building market. The Rotooffers spectacular performance and can often replace severalmachines on-site.”

7,000th UK Merlo

Ladybird takes first Gapo

Graham Trundell of GT Lifting with the 7,000th Merlo delivered into the UK.

The 1,600 tonne capacity Demag CC 9800

Market Leader New Build / Service / Training

New LVI option

Vehicle mounted access

1 Altendiez Way, Latimer Park, Burton Latimer, Northants. NN15 5YT

t:01536 721010 f:01536 721111 e:[email protected]

www.versalift.co.uk

APPROVED

TRAININGCENTRE


news c&a

Italian spider platform manufacturer Bluelift hasconfirmed that its UK distribution agreement withSkyKing was terminated as of the end of 2008.

Neither company was willing to discuss the rea-sons for the termination of the partnership whichbegan in May 2007.

However Gianpiero Marti of Bluelift speaking to Cranes&Access, said: “Given the potential of the UK and Ireland spider market, we need tofind another dealer as soon as possible.”

Haulotte tolaunch newplatformHaulotte, the French-based aerial lift and telehandler manufacturer,is launching a new 10metre (34ft) platformheight boom lift atIntermat this April. TheHA120PX builds on theHA12PX but incorporates many design features from the popular HA16PX including four wheel drive,zero tailswing, matchedrisers for perfect parallellifting to almost eightmetres and a jib with 140 degrees of articulation.

The company is alsoworking on an environmentally friendly version of its large scissor lift range, which will incorporate a number of ideas including recyclable panels which could be carried through to all products in the range.

Liebherr has held the official ground-breaking ceremony for its new plant at Dzerzhinskin the Nizhny Novgorod region of Russia and included the placing of a time capsule intothe foundations. Willy Liebherr, co-owner ofLiebherr and Valery Shantsev, the governor of theNizhny Novgorod, attended the event. The capsulecontains a message in Russian and German.

Turkish contractor Renaissance Construction willcarry out the two stage construction work on the12 hectare site. The first stage, scheduled for completion this year, includes buildings forhydraulic component and transmission production,metal processing and tower crane assembly aswell as aircraft equipment. Its cost is estimated at around €200 million excluding tools and equipment, to be supplied and installed by Liebherr. Completion of the second stage is scheduled for 2011 and will create a total of 600 jobs.

Liebherr breaks ground in Russia

Bluelift and SkyKing part company

Willy Liebherr and Valery Shantsev placethe time capsule in the first part of theplant's foundations.


Manitowoc hits new recordManitowoc crane sales in 2008 were upalmost 22 percent to a new record of$3.9 billion and would have beenhigher had it not been for a flatfourth quarter. Operatingincome at the crane divisionwas $556 million, anincrease of 18 percent.A poor fourth quartercut the company'sorder book by 35 percentfrom $2.9 to $1.9 billion which, the company says, could lead to cuts of up to 22 percent in its worldwide workforce during 2009.

JLG down 40%JLG has reported first quarter 2008/9 revenues of $368 million - down 40 percent on the same period last year. The business generated an operating loss of $47 million, compared to a profitof $67 million last year. New equipmentsales were down 51 percent in Europeand 45 percent in North America. Thecompany's order book at the end ofDecember was $140 million, compared to $923 million, at the end of 2007.

Manitou up 1.4%Manitou, the French-based telehandlerand aerial lift manufacturer, hasreported final full year revenues for2008 up 1.4 percent to €1.26 billion.The company reported strong sales in France and most of the EU, offsetby a collapse in the Spanish marketwhere sales fell 75 percent and theUK where figures were down 30 percent due to slower sales andweaker sterling. Outside of Europethere were steep declines in the USA, while sales in the rest of theworld rose by 25 percent.

Tanfield, owner of UpRightand Snorkel aerial lifts says that full year 2008revenues were £147 million, almost 20 percentup on 2007, largely due toa full year of Snorkel revenues, compared to lessthan six months in 2007.The company says it hasreturned to a break evenbasis after a number ofloss making months.

Palfinger up 14%Palfinger's revenues in 2008 increased by 14 percent to €795 million, thanks to strong crane sales in Europe during the first half of theyear, along with acquisitions made

Tanfield up 20%

during the year. A poor fourth quarter and higher volumes of lower marginproducts, such as tail lifts, resulted in a 31 percent fall in EBIT to €69 million.


newsc&aUK based aerial lift manufacturer Power Towers as announceda distribution partnership with Leicester-based Redband UK.Demag Cranes, the German-based manufacturer of overheadand harbour cranes, has reported first quarter revenues up 4.1%while profits increased 2%.Genie has announced that it will in future provide its parts andservice manuals on DVD and via the web, in place of printed manuals.Layher, the German based scaffold manufacturer has relocated to anew 12,000 square metre facility in Livingstone, Scotland.Link Belt has strengthened its productsupport team - Joe Staton has been promotedto product specialist, hydraulic cranes, whileGeorge Mitchell, Tony Hatton, and Jeff Horanare associate hydraulic crane technicians.CTE, the Italian based access equipmentmanufacturer has unveiled new product brandsfor its truck, spider and Bizzocchi fire platforms.Italian lifting attachment manufacturer, Gusella, hasappointed Approved Hydraulics as its UK distributor.DK Rental has appointed Philippe Parmentier to handleused equipment sales.Kobelco Cranes has re-appointed KevinTownsend as UK/Ireland productsupport manager.Cramo has acquired the rental operationsof Lidingö Hyrcenter, the Stockholmbased rental company.Dutch based rental company Kamphuis isexpanding into scissor lifts and adding moreboom lifts, following an acquisition in Germany. Konecranes (UK) has reported full year sales for 2008 up 77%and is upbeat about prospects for 2009.The third Middle East Crane Conference will be held later thismonth in Dubai, with a wide ranging programme for thoseinterested in cranes. The New York City construction industry is bracing itself formore than 40 new recently announced safety measures.Magnus Rosén taken over as chiefexecutive of international rental companyRamirent and has immediately streamlined itssenior management team.Al Laith Scaffolding, the Dubai-basedaccess specialist, has supplied DubaiAirport with a number of Niftylift platforms.Port Weller Dry Docks, an arm ofCanadian Shipbuilding andEngineering, has been fined C$175,000 after pleading guilty tofailing to maintain a crane which collapsed in 2007, killing its operator.Aichi has appointed Toyota Lift of South Texas asone of its new dealers.Cargotec, owner of Hiab loader cranes and Kalmar reachstackers, has created two new management boards.UK crane rental companies - John Sutch Cranes of Liverpool andthe Terranova Group in Reading - have switched tyre suppliers toDouble Coin tyres which are produced in China.Harsco, owner of SGB and Hünnebeck has appointed RichardSullivan as vice president of business transformation worldwide. Eurotank Environmental has won the 2008 Health and Safetyaward at the Association of Petroleum Explosives Administrationfor its Pyroban modified Niftylift 90s Two UK rail maintenance companies have failed intheir appeal against almost £500,000 of fines for the deathof a man while loading an aerial lift.Tech Ops/Sevcon, the producer of motor control systems for aeriallifts and forktrucks has seen a 33% drop in first quarter revenues.The Spider division of SafeWorks, has promoted Steve Cabralto industrial sales representative for its Eastern region.Dubai International Airport has purchased an Oil&Steel EagleS4230 truck platform for its maintenance fleet.Keep a look out for a 1998 Niftlift HR 12 that was stolenat the end of January in Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire.The serial number is 12-5419.Gabriele Valli is the new sales manager atItalian equipment specialist Isoli Spa havingmoved from CTE Spa.JLG has introduced a North AmericanFluid Analysis Program for owners of JLGtelehandlers and aerial work platforms.Dutch rental company Gjaltema has purchased five more Niftylifttrailer mounted boom lifts as part of a fleet expansion.

Genie has acquired the assets of a refurbishment facilityowned by United Rentals in Modesto, California. Wayland Hicks, vice chairman of United Rentals, is to resign,leaving the business at the end of February. The company alsoannounced that is planning to take a $1.1 billion non-cashhit in its 2008 accounts.Armed robbers used a JCB Loadall telehandler to breakinto a cash handling centre in Beaumont Leys, Leicestershire,UK last month.Max Access, the Oxfordshire-based company thatintroduced the spider lift to the UK has gone intoadministration, following a long period of difficult trading.Jason and Rachel Seddon of Leigh-based rental companyAerial Platforms are the proud parents of a baby girl. The Health and Safety Offences Act 2008 came into forceat the end of January with increased sentencing powers.Deutz-Fahr has shown two new JLG built telehandlermodels at the UK agricultural show LAMMA.Skyjack has appointed Rexco to distribute its VR rangeof telehandlers in Iowa and Western Illinois.Hiab has introduced an eight lever remote control.Bill Lasky has been appointed as chairman and CEO ofcommercial vehicle component company, Accuride.JLG has appointed Donald F. Roy assenior vice president manufacturing,responsible for leading JLG operationsand lean initiatives. US crane rental company, Amquip, hasrecruited Tom Prozinski of Arcomet tohead up its Northeast tower crane business.UK-based Global Private Equity hasacquired a controlling interest in Jassim Transport andStevedoring of Kuwait, which includes crane rental and heavy lifting.Dino Lift, the Finnish-based aerial lift manufacturer, will unveil anumber of new lifts at Intermat and is looking for a French distributor. Eazzi Access, the UK based producer of push around scissor lifts,has appointed Frank Parker as its technical manager.OSHA has issued three citations, including six serious,one repeat, and one "other-than-serious" violation againstDeep South Crane and RiggingT.R. Badarinarayan has joined Terex Cranes to head upa new sales and service centre in Pune, India. He waspreviously MD of Potain India.Link Belt has completed testing of the 500 tonne 548 crawlercrane with shipments due to start in the second quarter. It has alsoappointed Troy Krumm as field service manager and Frank Snappas technical product support manager.JLG has launched a new toll-free phone in the USAto reach JLG Service Centres.Crane companies in Australia's Northern Territory launched a newCrane Association (NTCA) in Darwin at the end of 2008.Geoff Holden has taken up the post of chief executive at theLifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA).Skyjack has appointed Golden Equipment Company ofAlbuquerque, New Mexico, to distribute its VR telehandler product line.Manitowoc has beefed up its tower crane sales team for theAsia-Pacific region. Victor Chan is appointed to the position ofsales director with two new regional sales managersSteven Ng and Joseph Chin.Access Rentals, the UK based powered access rental companyhas appointed David Lewis as its new sales director, OSHA has issued citations against Sarens and Norsar for the fatalGoliath crane collapse near Boston in August.JCB has made further staff cut backs and called for governmentaction to free up credit and accelerate infrastructure spending. Cargotec, owner of Hiab says that it has opened negotiations fortemporary lay-offs of around 900 staff at its Raisio and Tamperefacilities in Finland. Glyn Goodwin has joined the Southern Plant division ofBallyvesey Holdings, parent of the Montgomery Group ofNorthern Ireland. Lifting Gear Hire of Bridgeview, Illinois, has announced plans toexpand its coverage in the Eastern United Sates.UK-based AJ Access has added a number of new Genie boomsand scissors to its fleet.

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Ronan Maclennan has joined Genie Europe's aftermarketdivision from Easi UpLifts. Snorkel is to launch a new 65ft straight boom theTB65J with 5ft jib. Perkins Engines has appointed Gwenne Henricks asits new president, replacing Hans Haefeli who moves to CAT.2008 was a record year for Multitel Pagliero with morethan 1,000 platforms manufactured.The UK HSE is to prosecute three companies and an individualfor the fatal scaffold collapse in Milton Keynes in 2006.BilJax, now part of the Haulotte Group, says it will twolaunch new products at the ARA/Rental show in Atlanta. Niftylift has appointed Saleh & Abdulaziz AbahsainHeavy Equipment as its sole dis-tributor for Saudi Arabia. Genie has officially announced theappointment of Phil Graysmarkas divisional sales manager for the UK,Ireland, and Benelux, taking over fromJohn Fuller.The former crane inspector arrested on charges of falsifyingan inspection report for the crane that collapsed inNew York killing seven and injuring 24 haspleaded not guilty.Norwegian shipbuilder and offshore yard Ulstein Verfthas ordered a 600 tonne Terex-Demag CC2800-1.Industrial overhead crane manufacturer NAI Craneshas been acquired by Tonka Bay Equity Partners.NBKS Services has been appointed sole LindenComansa tower crane agent in QatarWe have received a bulletin from the Middle East alertingbuyers to beware of counterfeit Tadano truck cranes. Terex/Genie has appointed Martin Hauff as vice presidentof sales for Europe the Middle East, Africa, and Russia.Easi UpLifts the Irish headquartered international Access,telehandler and crane rental company is looking to open inLondon this spring.The Manitowoc Company has completed the sale of itsMarine business to Fincantieri Marine Group Holdings.The Malaysia Mobile Crane Owners Associationhas announced that it is cutting its official rates by five percent“in an effort to help the construction industry.” Wumag will close its Spanish sales and service operation thisweek and distribution of Palfinger-Wumag will move toMycsa Mulder - the Palfinger dealer. Houston based TNT Crane & Rigging has purchased theassets of Americrane, the Dallas-Fort Worth,crane and rigging company.Konecranes, the overhead crane manufacturer isintroducing a new five stage range of service levels.

Altec the utility truck, crane and platform company haspurchased the Lift-All division of Hydra-Tech.CTE and sister company Bizzocchi have notched up twonew milestones -CTE has produced the 4,000the truck mountedlift at its Rivoli Veronese production facility and Bizzocchi hasproduced its 6,000th truck mounted lift at its Bertinoro facility.Multitel has supplied the first aerial work platforms mountedon a Renault Maxity chassis cab in the UK.Cramo the Finnish based international rental company,has purchased Rentakran's minority shareholding in theCramo-Rentakran joint venture.The UK HSE is urging construction industry leaders to takeadvantage of a free guide that, it says, could bring significantbenefits to their business.

Joe Staton

Gabriele Valli

KevinTownsend

Magnus Rosén

A Lift-All utility truck

Phil Graysmark

Donald F.Roy

News HIGHLIGHTS

Ca l l 0845 0175 500 f o r more in fo rmat ion on the fu l l UpR igh t range o r v i s i t :

takingto New Heights

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• New line of straight telescopic andarticulated boom lifts; plus slab

and rough terrain scissors

• Global sales and support networkproviding local, high quality service

Find the right machine for you atwww.upright.com


spider liftsc&a

Conceived in Denmark in the late1970's, the first spider lifts beganto surface elsewhere from 1982when the originator Falck Schmidtstarted exporting. It then took thebest part of a quarter of a centurybefore they became an establishedniche machine. However, over thepast two years its increasinglyappreciated 'jack of all trades'capability has elevated it into analmost 'must have' machineparticularly for owner-operatorslooking for a single platformcapable of a wide variety of work.

In spite of their growing popularityspiders have never sold in bignumbers. But demand is steadilyincreasing, driven by a diverserange of end users, creating excellent utilisation for rentalcompanies which also benefit fromgood hire rates and return oninvestment. Total sales in the UKand Ireland are still modest, ataround 250 or so last year - but asmore and more users realise theirbenefits, this looks set to growsignificantly.

Sadly, Max Access (or BG CraneSales as it was originally known)which introduced the first spiderlifts (Falck Schmidt) into the UK hasrecently gone into administrationand looks set to be liquidated. Butthe remainder of the UK spiderindustry appears to be in surprisinglygood health.

A tale of two partsThe sector is roughly divided intotwo - articulated up to 20 metres -although with new machine launchesthis is now nudging 21/23 metres -and larger units from around 25 to50 metres - most of which arestraight boomed models witharticulating jibs. The 10 to 23 metreworking height machines arepredominantly Italian-built with the

likes of Hinowa, CTE, PlatformBasket, Bluelift, Oil&Steel as wellas Nifty being the major players.The larger models are primarilyprovided by Omme, Palazzani,Worldlift Industries (Falck Schmidtand Denka Lift) and a few Celamachines. One company notmentioned is Teupen which hasprobably the widest range of spidermachines ranging from 12 to 50metres and over the last few yearshas been responsible for raising theawareness and capability of thelarger spider platforms into themainstream market.

Teupen has been producing trackedspider lifts since 1987 and has areputation for being a premiumbrand. From 2005, the marque hasbeen distributed in the UK andIreland by Chesterfield-based RangerEquipment/The Spider Lift company.In an effort to diversify the companyhas recently added to the range ofproducts it offers, with Dino trailerand self propelled platforms and nowAichi scissor and boom lifts. (SeeRanger Equipment story on page23). “Teupen spiders have a reputation for being able to do jobsthat others cannot,” says managingdirector Steve Hadfield.

“A new branding will promotethe new platforms available fromRanger Equipment and TheSpiderlift Company will cater forall Teupen rentals.”

Dino trailer platforms weredistributed by another quietlysuccessful spider lift specialist,Grimethorpe-based PromaxEquipment, until the opportunityto distribute Bil-Jax trailer andlightweight platforms presenteditself mid last year.

“Dino was not a great success forus due to its high purchase price,particularly with Niftylift havingsuch a stronghold on the UK market,” said Promax directorShaun Day. “We replaced the Dinowith the Bil-Jax platforms which arefantastic machines and far moresuitable for us. They are very wellmade with a good price.”

Oh what atangled webwe weaveWith the UK, Ireland and several other European economies nowofficially in recession, it is pleasing to find one sector of the equipmentbusiness that is still performing positively. The spider lift, once aniche and specialised item of equipment, is well on the way tobecoming mainstream. And even in the current crunch climate thesector is still doing quite nicely, thank you very much. Cranes & Access investigates.

CTE Traccess 170

A typical spider situation

A Bluelift C14/6.5


spider lifts c&aUser to dealerHowever it is spider lifts that Promaxis best known. The company wasformed in 1993 as a timber andsteel installation contractor and atone point employed 28 steel erectors.During its contracts, the companyneeded access equipment and purchased a number of machines forits own use. However, when itneeded a platform that could gothrough restricted openings and stilloffer a decent working height itpurchased an 18 metre platformheight Platform Basket RQG 18spider. This was 10 years ago andthose who used it thought the platform was fantastic. It created alot of interest particularly with its 11 metre outreach.

option to allow the users full accessaround the machine to provide greaterall round operator visibility if required,a major benefit for the safe loadingand unloading from the transport orwhen moving the machine onuneven or difficult ground.

From truck mounts torefined spidersCTE UK - best known for its 3.5tonne chassis truck mounted lifts -entered the spider market aboutthree years ago with the 13.3 metreworking height Traccess 135 followedabout a year later with its biggerbrother, the 17 metre 170. The companyis also in the process of expandingthe range, expecting to launch a 21metre version in the near future.

Being relatively late into the market,CTE was able to incorporate featuresinto its compact design asked for bythe users and purchasers. Theseinclude a jib that locks into positionwhen folded, better boom rigidity duringrotation and a stable boom movement.

Umbilical cord “Both our spider platforms havenumerous features that make themachines much easier and safer touse,” says CTE UK's JonathanWiseman. “The five metre longumbilical cable - stored in a box onthe machine - is plugged in wheneverthe machine needs to be moved onsite or loaded or unloaded. Themachine cannot be moved if it is notplugged in - a very good safety feature.”

Both CTE machines are particularlycompact - the smaller unit is 3,760mmlong and features a quick releasebasket arrangement which can reducethe length even further. Because ofthe size of the basket, removing it isreally a two person task. The 17metre platform is just 800mm wide,ideal for most standard doorways orgates. Both models feature a cleanboom top with telescopic cylinderlocated on the underside while thepowertrack is routed internally sonothing can get caught and foul themechanism - particularly useful fortree workers which is an increasinglypopular application for spider lifts.

“We decided to do more with thespiders and had the opportunity toeither hire or sell the Platform Basketmachines in the UK,” said Day,“finally opting to sell and becomingthe official Platform Basket dealersfrom 1999 onwards. We also continued with the steel businessuntil 2004.”

So Promax has been distributing theBasket RQG range of spider platformsfor the best part of a decade, but itis over the last two years that it hasseen the most change.

“The completely redesigned Basket1575 - a 15 metre tracked platformlaunched in late 2007 - was acompletely fresh design carried outunder the direction of the PlatformBasket director of engineering, CarloMolesini,” said Day. “This showedthat the manufacturer was listeningto dealer and customer feed-backand was willing to make changes.”

Featuring a simple, single-lever,track-widening system, it gave theBasket 1575 increased stabilitywhilst travelling, but retained itsability to pass through a single doorway in its narrow setting. A longertrack length was also introduced toreduce ground pressure resulting inless damage to surfaces as well asreducing the excessive longitudinal

rocking movement, something

which is often experienced on shorttrack machines particularly whentracking over ridges or the breakpoint of ramps on trailers. The newtrack system also providedincreased ground clearance, to helpavoid roots and debris catching theundercarriage when travelling overpoor terrain.

Fixed spider legsThe new cranked outrigger legdesign on this unit is a blend of thefull spider lift outrigger and the simplerstraight fixed outrigger, allowinggreater ground clearance to beachieved for setting up on slopes,without the cost and complexity ofspider legs. Other features includeda simple operating system, ideal forshort term hirers and those lessfamiliar with spiders, a fullyindependent fly jib even with thefull 200kg cage capacity and amaximum outreach of 7.5 metres.

Last year the 18 metre version -the Spider 1875 - was introduced.Weighing just over two tonnes, notonly does it offer low groundpressures, but it is also easier totow and transport. If a greateroutreach is required there is an 8.5metre outreach option whichweighs just 2,350kg.

Later this year, Platform Basket is

set to launch a new 22 metre spiderweighing less than three tonnes,which should allow it to be towedbehind a Land Rover or similar 4x4.The platform has a 10 metre workingoutreach with 200kg cage capacity.Other features include a fly jib, 160degree cage rotation, adjustable twoposition outriggers, radio control fordriving and setting up of the machineand no exposed hoses or electricswhich are mounted inside the boom- all features in response to dealerand customer feedback. Larger spiderplatforms from Platform Basketinclude a 25 metre and two 30metre units. Promax also distributesanother Italian spider manufacturer -Cela - which has a range up to38 metres.

The Platform Basket spiders areavailable with a hard-wired wanderinglead controller or radio remote unit

Stairs? No problem for a

spider lift

A rough terrain Falck Schmidt?

Oil&Steel’s latestOctopussy 555


spider liftsc&a

The Traccess 170 weighs just overtwo tonnes and with a closed lengthwithout basket of 3,760mm iscompact enough to tow behind a4x4 car or pickup. Neither CTEmachine has self-levelling - a featurethat Wiseman thinks addscomplication and cost.

“We aimed for a simple, strong,reliable product with the minimumof electronics to go wrong,” saysWiseman. “The 170 has the sameoperating controls as our truckmounts which give immediatefamiliarity and the sigma boom isoperated by just one lever. Alsowhen tracking on uneven ground, itis possible to partially lower theoutriggers so that if the unit were totopple, the legs would support theunit and prevent a fall.”

CTE UK opened in 2002 in Desford,Leicestershire, however, it hasrecently moved into new premises -previously used by NationwidePlatforms - in nearby Enderbywhich has 'a good yard and workshopsas well as office space and goodconnections throughout the UKthanks to its central location'.

My spider and meThe spider platform is becomingincreasingly popular with the owner

operator, someone who is lookingfor one machine to carry out a multitudeof tasks. This market sector is set toexplode over the next few years asthe Work at Height directive beginsto bite forcing more trades - includingpainters, window cleaners, gutterand facia contractors and all mannerof tradesmen who regularly work ontwo or three story homes and smallindustrial buildings - to leave theirladders and adopt powered accesseven for relatively short durationwork. Small trailer lifts have beenthe machine of choice for the moreprogressive in this market, but theycan be awkward to locate and tomove around the back of a buildingor inside. A small spider lift can stillbe towed, but once at the job offersinfinitely more versatility.

For most of these trades 12 or 13metres of working height is ideal,however with the latest 17/18 metrelifts coming in at around two tonnes- light enough to be easily towed -many buyers, especially rentalcompanies, are preferring to tradeup to the higher units in order togain the additional capability, even ifthe extra height is only occasionallyrequired. With the latest 20 to 23metre lightweight models comingavailable it will be interesting to see

how many buyers choose to moveup a further five metres.

Bluelift looks formore in UKAnother manufacturer looking toincrease its presence in the UK andIreland is Bluelift. The Italian spiderplatform manufacturer recentlyended its UK distribution agreementwith SkyKing.

“Given the potential of the UK andIreland spider market, we need tofind another dealer as soon as possible,”says Bluelift's Gianpiero Marti.

No reasons so far been given as towhy Skyking and Bluelift partedcompany, but reading between thelines, Bluelift is looking forsignificantly more sales in the UK.Last year the company signeddealership agreements with Heli inBelgium, Luxemburg, Netherlandsand Northern France; Scanmas inDenmark and Scandinavia and Velillain Spain. This year the company isaiming to increase its presence inthe East European market and islooking for a dealer in Russia andCIS countries.

Bluelift is a relatively young brand,but has many years experiencebuilding machines for other companies.Its products are innovative, good-lookingand well-designed clearly highlightingits previous experience. This year itunveiled another new model, the 14

metre working height, 6.5 metreoutreach, 200kg capacity C14/6.5spider with stowed dimensionsclose to its 12 metre model.Measuring 4.1 metres long, 0.78metres wide and two metres high,its size is not dissimilar to the 17metre CTE and features a similarremovable basket reducing itsoverall length.

Boom function memoryThe C14/6.5 features a fully electronically controlled boom movement first lifting the articulatedboom before allowing the top boomto telescope. It also features upgradedsoftware and an added FunctionMemory System (FSM) feature thatcan memorise the boom movements

CTE’s larger 17 metre spider

Compact dimensions alloweasy access through doorways

Shaun Day of Promax demonstrates the Platform Basket single lever track widening system


spider lifts c&aand repeat them automaticallywhich could be useful for operativescarrying out extended work in aspecific position.

Outrigger set up is fully automaticand should the control systemdetect any loss of loading on theoutriggers, the boom movement

the boom giving added protectionfrom accidental damage.

One feature that is different is itstwo section telescopic articulatedpantograph boom which Blueliftclaims is a first on a 14 metre spider.Probably true, however at SAIE,there were two other (admittedly 17

After a few quiet years it is currentlymaking a comeback and has startedshipping its latest model theOctopussy 2190, with a 21 metreworking height and nine metres ofoutreach with 200kg capacity. The2190 features a double-pantographriser and telescopic boom allowingthe operator to follow the verticalface of a building without constant

stops, an alarm sounds and onlymovements to lower the boom areallowed. Bluelift says that it was thefirst aerial platform manufacturerwith this system which also provides full diagnostics. The newmachine also has cable remote control with radio remote as anoption and all hosing is run inside

metre) new machines on display thatincluded this feature - the MultitelSMX170 and Palazzani TZX170 producedas a joint venture between the two.

The OctopussyOil&Steel was one of the firstcompanies to promote the small,compact Italian type spider lifts inthe UK with its Octopussy range.

corrections - particularly useful forexample, when cleaning windowsor inspecting facades, whileproviding up and over reach ofup to 10.5 metres.

The company will also launch anew tracked platform for the NorthAmerican market - the Octopus 55 -at the ARA/Rental show in Atlantanext month.

The Octopussy 2190

An Easylift R190 at theAPF forestry show

"The company is pushing forward itsexpansion strategy in North Americaand the USA in particular," saysAndrea Certo, chief executive ofOil&Steel. "We are really confidentabout the future success of theOctopus line."

From tracks tocompact spidersWhile Oil&Steel pioneered the smallspider market in the UK, Hinowa isarguably the market leader worldwidein this sector. The company isrenowned for its tracked undercarriageand entered the market as a jointventure, but soon moved on to produceits own models. APS handles the UKdistribution and has been highlysuccessful with a wide range ofbuyers, including a large number ofend users, particularly in thearborist market.

Headquartered in Nogara, nearVerona, Hinowa has five main productcategories, four of which use thetracked undercarriage. Its latest 23metre working height Light Lift23.12 has an impressive outreachjust under 12 metres with 120kg in the basket. Outrigger spreadremains under four metres, but onlyjust and with an overall length of5.96 metres is hardly a 'compact'spider. However in addition to itsoutreach it weighs less than threetonnes maintaining the ability to betowed behind a large 4x4. Theplatform features automaticoutrigger levelling on slopes up to13 degrees, full error and fault-finding

display and a new, patented, 360degree boom rotation system.

Hinowa's design department clearlyhas an eye for producing solutionsto problems. Its latest offering is theLight Tower Kit, a lighting systemthat can be mounted instead of thebasket on the whole range ofHinowa spider lifts turning it into atrack mounted lighting tower reducinginvestment and increasing utilisationfor an owner or rental company.

Easy Lift - seen for the first time inthe UK last summer at the VertikalDays show at Haydock Park -unveiled two new models. The R160which has one metre more reachthan the 15 metre R150, yet is morecompact and the R300 a 30 metreplatform with three metre jib. Theseven model range is now distributedby Eaton Socon-based Powerlift UKwhich was previously the distributorfor TerrainScout (Italmec) machines.

The big boysWhen it comes to larger spider liftsthe main focus moves away fromItaly to Denmark and Germany.Danish manufacturer Omme Liftidentified outreach - or lack of it -as one of the main restrictions forusers, particularly tree surgeons orthose working up and over buildingsand obstacles.

It claims that its new 27.5 metre2750 RBDJ with a 200kg basketload which should be available fromlate spring this year solves thisproblem. With 15.5 metres outreach,zero tailswing and 10.5 metre up

and over height the specificationsare impressive, especially whencombined with a stowed length of7.5 metres and a retracted width ofjust 1.1 metres.

Like many Omme machines, theplatform can set up on slopes orsteps of up to 40 percent, perfect forhilly ground, steps or landings wherea good footing is needed.

The company says that the manuallevelling of the stabilisers assuressafe setup in the most difficult ofsituations and gradeability is 35percent - equivalent to 19.3 degrees.By using non-skid crawler belts, theplatform can cope with rough terrainand in town centres for climbingkerbs and other obstacles. Omme isdistributed in the UK and Ireland byAPS, combining perfectly with itsHinowa range of compact spiders.

The originalThe originator of the spider liftconcept, Falck Schmidt, now part ofWorldlift Industries, is really at thetop end of the market with its Falconrange of both wheeled and trackedspider lifts. The company has builtup a substantial niche business inatrium work thanks to its ability tomove through narrow doors andthen reach up 42 metres. Thecompany is renowned for customisingits big lifts for special applications.Its largest track mounted lifts featuredual trunion mounted undercarriagesthat can negotiate steep escalators

or slopes. Since the demise of MaxAccess - the long time distributorFacelift - the Hickstead-based accessspecialist is now the sole distributorfor both Denka and Falck Schmidt.

While we have focused on thecompanies that are most active inthis market, what is just as interestingare the manufacturers are not present in this expanding market.It is surprising that none of the bigself propelled manufacturers has yetto dip its toe into this market. Niftyis probably the largest to do so todate, while JLG, Genie, Skyjack,Haulotte or UpRight have seeminglyshown no interest. As the conceptcontinues to grow in popularity, thismight of course change. But will itbe via organic entry or acquisition?


spider liftsc&a

Jonathon Wiseman of CTE UKdemonstrates the plug-in cableand controller for moving themachines

The Hinowa LightLift 23.12 has a 12metre outreach

A pair of spiders carrying outbuilding maintenance


ranger equipmentc&a

In 2005 Ranger was appointed UKdistributor for Teupen spider platformsand a combination of a good productwith strong marketing and salesresulted in several years ofsignificant growth.

Last March, the company launched'The Spiderlift Company' in an effortto reflect the company's area ofbusiness. However, confusion overthe new name - designed for use bythe rental side of the business - andthe existing Ranger Equipmentwhich is the equipment sales sideof the business, has resulted in amajor rethink.

Development Agencytransformation“Because of the tremendous growthwe have achieved over the lastthree to four years, we becameinvolved with the East MidlandsDevelopment Agency's 'high growthprogramme'. Its help has transformedour outlook and approach to the waywe do business,” says managingdirector Steve Hadfield.

The idea behind the programme is tomaximise and maintain the expansionof 'high growth' companies. By helpingthem they repay the time and specialist input with continuedgrowth, raising the profile ofbusinesses in the region andultimately increasing employment.

“We are one of just 27 companies inthe East Midlands and with EMDAhelp, the whole mindset of all ouremployees has changed,” saysHadfield. “By formalising andimplementing a 10 year companystrategy it has led to developing ashort and medium marketingstrategy both for marketing andsales which has led us to rethink thewhole company setup.”

Over the next three to six months,there will be a complete revampwith a different identity for RangerEquipment which will deal with new,premium brand equipment sales.This division will include Finnish-madeDino Lift trailer and self propelledplatforms and Japanese Aichi scissorand boom machines alongside theestablished Teupen range of spiderlifts. The Spiderlift Company - whichwas originally for the Teupen spiderplatform rental operation - willcontinue, headed up by Andy Bray. Aichi started looking for a UK dealer

in May 2007 and had several possiblecandidates. By last September'sApex we were all expecting anannouncement to be made publicbut no, although they had decidedon Ranger, it was not officiallyannounced until December. Rangernow has a two year letter of intentat which time Aichi president ShinjiTakeuchi will return to the UK tofinalise the agreement.

“Nothing is rushed with Aichi,” saysHadfield, “we had intended to targetthe launch for February or March,but with agreeing price lists and furtherdeveloping a marketing strategy wehave decided to launch two

Always lookon the brightside of life…If Monty Python's film 'The Life of Brian' taught usanything, it is to be positive and 'always look on thebright side of life' (whistling optional!). In spite of thecurrent gloom, there are companies with this positiveoutlook, determined to buck the current trend andactually grow the business. Specialist equipmentsupplier and hirer Ranger Equipment/The SpiderliftCompany is one such business.

machines - the SR14CJ which is a15.6 metre working height, 12.6metre outreach crawler boom andan electric scissor at Vertikal Daysat Haydock Park on 24th and 25th June.”

'Nothing is rushed'Ranger does not envisage any Aichisales before the Vertikal Days launchand according to Hadfield there ismore emphasis on getting thebasics right and establishing thebrand than simply selling units forthe first two years.

“During 2010 we are aiming forabout 100 units but we need toscale up significantly in subsequentyears,” he said.

With a clearly defined divide betweennew equipment sales and rental, itallows the rebranded Ranger to buildup its new equipment sales.

“Aichi gives us a foot into the mainaerial lift market, but we do notwant to veer away from specialistequipment,” says Hadfield. “We willcontinue to look and talk to othermanufacturers with premium productsthat may be added to our portfolio.Quality products do have a premiumprice but this equates to increasedperformance, reliability, resale valuesand therefore lower whole-lifeownership costs.”

Entering into an agreement withAichi has been a long, slow process,but once finalised, it is long-termcommitment from both parties.

Steve Hadfield withAichi president Shinji Takeuchi


ranger equipment c&a

capital spending on hold, somemight question Ranger Equipment'sdecision to pursue the 'premiumbrand' option.

“Quality products which are initiallymore expensive, will never appeal tothe largest access rental companies,”says Hadfield, “but the small tomedium sized companies such asKimberley Access and Hi-Reachwhose senior management own thecompanyandthereforetake alonger term view ofits products, are thesort of companiesthat will be interestedin our premium brandproducts.”

Kimberly Access'gambled' by purchasingtwo Teupen platformslast summer - a Leo23GT (23 metre workingheight and 11.2 metreoutreach) and Leo 30T (30 metre workingheight, 15.7 metreoutreach) andsays it has notlooked back since.

“We bought the two Leos

Ranger will sell the full Aichi range,all of which, says Hadfield, will beCE marked and will include Aichi'scompact insulated boom truck mounts.

“Although Aichi has an office andparts facility in Holland, we dealdirectly with Aichi in Japan. We willkeep a stock of product and parts inthe UK but obviously can draw onthe resources in Holland if needed.”

The range of products will includenew five, six, eight and 10 metreelectric scissors; 12 to 14 metrewheeled and tracked booms withand without jibs as well as 21 metrewheeled and tracked booms.

Ranger Equipment's other 'premium'brand is Finnish trailer and self propelledplatform manufacturer Dino Liftwhich it signed up at Vertikal Dayslast summer but has yet to really getgoing. With tough UK competitionoffering significantly lower prices,this might be the hardest of thethree brands to make a success outof, although the small to mediumDino straight telescopic boom liftsmight win over end users with theirextra outreach.

Premium productsthe way to goWith the current recession andmany large rental companies putting

specifically to supply the internalfit-out of the Westfield shoppingcentre in London's White City,” saidRay Ledger, chairman of KimberlyAccess. “We set up a site depotwith 380 machines for Westfield,and thought we would take achance and get two Teupens inthere. Within days of them beingdelivered, they were snapped upand have stayed out on hire all theway through the project. At onepoint, we had nine Teupen spiderlifts working on the site, with sevenunits on cross-hire from TheSpiderlift Company's own rentalfleet. The Teupen's very low floorloading meant that fit-out workcould continue on the marble floorsas they were installed, which wasa huge advantage.”

Distributors that rentDistributors that also rent equipmentis a topic that tends to split many a discussion. Ranger has soldnumerous platforms to hire companieswhich in theory are in competitionthrough the Spiderlift Company.

“If we know a rental company thatwe have sold equipment to is aftera rental contract, we step back toavoid any conflict,” says Hadfield.

“However we havemachines in thehire fleet that areunique such as theLeo 50 GTX and theLeo 36. In all wehave 28 Teupenplatforms withworking heightsfrom 15 to 50metres available forhire and will beadding the firstproduction 40metre, Leo 40 GTXplatform as soon asit is available.”

The fleet is set toexpand by a further10 platforms overthe next 18 months.

Ranger/Spiderlift first started planningfor a recession during the second halfof 2007 and it was at this point thatit became involved with the EMDA.The company is now finalising amove to new 10,000 sq ft premisesbetween Junction 29 and 29A of theM1 motorway. It has been in itscurrent 2,500 sq ft facility for fiveyears and according to Hadfield 'isbursting at the seams.' And its growth is not slowing. Four additional employees have been taken on recently, including an engineer, a driver an operationsmanager, Shelley White anddemonstrator/training instructorBrian Penny.

“The change means that everyone is 100 percent behind the company,involved in the company strategy,mission statement and companyvalues. The current 12 staff will needto increase to 18 by early 2010 andto 25 by 2011 to hit our targets.”Revenues (just Teupen and nottaking the other marques intoconsideration) which for 2007,2008 and 2009 were around the £3million mark, should increase to£4.5 million in 2010 and £6.4million in 2011.

A case studyRanger has already been used asone of four Business Link casestudies which is available on U-Tube.“We want to be seen as a qualitycompany, win awards, be Investorsin People and a training matrixcompany which trains everyone from the drivers to the managingdirector,” says Hadfield.

Identifying how to overcome apotential recession has totallytransformed Ranger Equipment,taking it on a journey that evenHadfield would have thought highlyunlikely. However with the differentmind-set, involving all employeesdoing everything possible to makeit succeed, the future certainlylooks rosy.

Two Aichi machines - an SR 14CJ crawler boom and an electric scissor - will belaunched at Vertikal Days in June.

Andy Bray (L) with Steve Hadfield

The new 45ft Aichi

SR14CJ


tower cranes c&a

Tower cranes have unfortunatelymade the front page news in boththe UK and the USA for all thewrong reasons over the past couple of years, with the highprofile accidents in Liverpool,Croydon, Battersea, several inNew York, Miami and more.Although tower cranes have a farbetter safety record than mostother construction equipment andcertainly far better than mobilecranes, when they do go downthey are highly visible and theaccidents much more severeoften including multiple fatalities.

The Heath & Safety Executive,always at the centre of any majorincident in the UK, had initiallyagreed to give a useful insight interview with Cranes & Access.However, at the last moment itdeclined, primarily because seniorpersonnel in various departmentswere covering their backs and didnot want to 'carry the can' in caseour visit and coverage unveiledsomething they did not want.

I'm sorry, but isn't the industry lookingto the HSE for guidance and decisions? To wimp-out of an opportunity to put its message overto its prime audience because no-one would accept responsibility

is quite frankly pathetic. And mirrorsthe perceived attitude of the Executivein dealing with accidents - blameand prosecute, not help and advise.At least they made the decision notto talk to us quickly enough, something that cannot be said forresolving and publicising the findings of an accident investigation.So without input from the HSE, we continue…...with the HSE/government and its decision to proceed with an official register of tower cranes.

It is early days yet, but it is thoughtthat the register will initially be voluntary becoming mandatory at afuture date. The register will containa variety of information includingcrane make, model, location, managing organisation and owner.But which bit of the tower cranewill be in the register? With somany different sections, contractorsthemselves have a hard job of keeping track of some of the bits.Perhaps the register might lead to acar MOT type test after certain 'bits'have been operational for so manyyears? What it hopes to achieve Iam not sure but it has the backingof the Construction Plant-hire

Tower cranesafety still amajor causefor concernRecent incidents involving 'Urban Explorers' - youngstersafter an adrenalin rush by climbing tower cranes atnight - highlight some of the unwanted and unnecessarysafety risks involved with tower cranes. Very fewcrane accidents can be traced to a mechanical failure,the vast majority are down to human error, usually due to lack of common sense, fatigue, training or experience or a combination of all four.

Association (CPA) whose head,Colin Wood, said: “we (the association) totally support thismove if it gives confidence to thegeneral public and extra statutorypaperwork can be avoided.”

If the recent trend of fatal accidentscontinues it will certainly notincrease public confidence and youcan be sure there will be additionalpaperwork - its government driven!

In New York - the city with probablythe worst tower crane record in thewestern world - the Department ofBuildings has just announced a raftof 'new rules (about 40) aimed atmaking high-risk sites safer and tocorrect the problems that led to twodeadly crane collapses that killednine people last year. In fact, itlooks as if it is to introduce something along the lines of a craneregister, where officials can see acrane's maintenance history andage online, similar to that availablefor used cars in the USA.

One new rule requires more frequent(but non specific) inspections ofolder cranes. Spot inspectionsaround the city last November foundthat 25 percent of the 38 activetower cranes were more than 30

An Urban Explorerclimbing a tower

crane at night

New York, March 2008

East 91st Street, New York May 2008

AGF offers tower crane safetysystems including anti collisionas fitted to these cranes inManchester


tower cranesc&ayears old. Perhaps there really issomething in older cranes beingmore at risk. The accident on FirstAvenue/East 91st street involved aKodiak crane that was almost 25years old.

A register would show - withenough information - a relationshipbetween age, maintenance and reliability (or accidents), but does it need a register to do this?

Contract time pressures and operator/erector carelessness arefactors that are hard to eradicatewithout a major change in mentality.Most airline pilots for example stilluse a written check list beforeevery flight, checking off the itemas they go, this in spite of themknowing the checklist back to front.

Better training, sensible hours andmore experienced operators, banksmen, slingers, erectors andmaintenance engineers who areallowed to work without cuttingcorners to save time, will reduceerrors, but there is a cost - minimalin relation to the overall project cost- but a significant percentage of thecurrent crane rental cost.

Technology such as anti-collision or zoning systems built-in or added to tower cranes has alsocontributed toward improving safety, which of course, aids productivity. These also provide avital operator aid, reducing stressand enabling the operator to focusmore on manoeuvring and handlingloads around busy sites.

Accidents result in a huge loss oftime while investigations are inprogress; loss of equipment if a collision is involved; damage tobuilding components and of coursethe consequences of dealing with a fatality or serious injury. Themeasured costs can be massive on their own, while the cost to acontractor's damaged reputationeven greater.

Advanced technology is contributingto safer working environments, provided they are properly utilisedand form part of a total safety management policy which should

also include ongoing training.

One such example is the enhancedsecurity now possible with wirelesstechnology facilitating communicationbetween cranes without the need to run cables around the site. Beingwireless the information can bemade more readily available. Today,it is possible for a crane supervisoror site manager, using his desk topPC, in conjunction with systemsfrom technology providers such as SMIE to see in real-time, the operation of each tower crane, themovement and load parameters.

Alerts can be set for any disconnection of safety systems,over-rides or malfunctions. Thisinformation can be via the wirelessconnection or even over the Internetmaking remote supervision possible.

Other products are available thatincorporate a data logger or 'blackbox' that records the crane operationsto aid incident investigation andenable management to analyse, indetail, crane operations, near misses,the number of times the crane hasmoved into a restricted zone andmore. The wireless technology alsoenables remote diagnostics of faultsso system failures can be remediedin the shortest possible time. Theyalso enable a site manager toreschedule deliveries and work patterns to take advantage of aninterruption on one area, by scheduling work in overlap zones.

Advanced communication systems,new slinging attachments, arrangements, methods andadvances in crane design are constantly evolving requiring newrestrictions or operating parameters.These will all require additionaltraining and an effective communication plan. Even siteworkers not involved with towercranes need to be aware of risks,not only around them but also overhead.

More experienced operators also needregular retraining and assessmentas systems change and developover the years. The more experiencedoperators will often say that anti-collision and zoning systems areunnecessary and reduce their productivity. What they usually meanis that they object to an automaticbraking system that brings the craneto a smooth stop when nearing acritical condition instead of the hardbraking they prefer to use. Hardbraking makes load control more difficult to manage and places additional strains on the crane'smechanical systems and structure.It is, as such, an unsafe practice.

It is not only tower crane manufacturers and specialist companies that are working to maketower crane operations safer. Anincreasing number of rental companiesand contractors are also taking theresponsibility more seriously.

Select Plant Hire, one of the world'slargest tower crane rental specialists,emphasises the importance of training and safety awareness.

“Safety within our business is paramount, which is why we useproven safety devices to aid ourdrivers on multi-crane environments- we consider them almost a

mandatory requirement,” says general manager Duncan Salt. “Ofcourse, there can be some circumstances where their use isnot feasible. In which case we needto ensure that there is an extremelyrobust risk-assessment in place, butsuch exceptions are rare.”

“We are very proud of our drivers,many having been with us for anumber of years and they all appreciate the emphasis we put on their safety. We have our own training programmes where we trainand evaluate drivers, banksmen,slingers and erectors. Every towercrane driver is fully evaluated and given additional training as appropriate. All drivers also undergoregular medical assessments.”

Select employs assessors whosejob it is to constantly oversee thetower crane teams to quickly identify and implement remedialaction where necessary. There is alsoa safety and compliance managerwho focuses on ensuring that thecompany policy of 'best practice' is adhered to at all times.

“Safety is something that Select andour parent company, Laing O'Rourketake seriously and will thoroughlyinvestigate every breach or possiblebreach such as near misses.”

Safety should never be compromisedwhich is the line the HSE takes.Perhaps it should try and help companies realise this rather thantelling them they got it wrong afterthe event.

Croydon, June 2007

A Yongmao

stt293 jacking in

LondonDocklands

New York,May 2007

51st Street, Manhattan March 2008


tower cranes c&a

Yongmao, perhaps China's mostinternational tower crane manufacturer has been distributedwith some success in Europe byBrussels-based Jin Long sincelate 2006, by London Tower Cranes,it has also had some success inthe USA and Australia. Other

Chinese brands are much lessknown - mostly unheard of - outside of China, but are nowpushing exports, mainly to markets in the developing world.

The recent Bauma China exhibitionsaw companies such as ShenyangShendiao Tower Crane Manufacture

Towers tothe West,towers tothe East

Last month's issue of Cranes & Access highlighted theadvances Chinese manufacturers are making in thecrawler crane sector. It would also appear that something similar is happening with tower cranes. The major European tower crane manufacturing countries such as France, Germany, Spain and Italy now have not only a global downturn to deal with, butalso a real and growing export threat from China.

New MDTtops the range Potain is set to launch the largest model in its MDT tower crane range, the MDT 368. Available in two capacity versions, the 12 tonneL12 and the MDT 368 L16 with 16 tonne maximum capacity.

(SYSD ), Deying, Dahan, ZhejiangHuba Construction Machinery,Zoomlion, Jianglu Machinery andElectronics Technology (CNGC),Useter Crane, Sichuan, Jinchengand Yongmao showing a wide variety of luffing, flat-top and saddle-jib cranes. The range ofproducts on offer is growing considerably and it is only a matterof time before they start to make animpact on the more establishedbrands.

The big western manufacturers arenot sitting idly by - many are lookingat building either the whole crane orat least some of their more basiclabour intensive components in thePeoples Republic. Potain is probablyleading this charge having builttower cranes at its plantZhangjiagang city for several years.In 2006 it added a new 120,000square metre facility to replace the existing plant, which is alsoavailable to build other Manitowoccrane group products.

Of the Chinese manufacturers,Shenyang-based Useter, formed just a year ago, already has arespectable range. Its latest is theJL316-24 - a 60 metre, luffing jibcrane which 3.7 tonne jib tip capacity. This year it is planning toextend its range into the 500 to2,000 tonne/metres range - withmaximum loads up to 50 tonnesand jibs to 80 metres - aimed atinfrastructure contracts. CNGC has launched a new luffingjib tower crane - the QTD 480 -which can take 7.5 tonnes out to 50metres. Yongmao's latest toplesscrane - the STT 753 has a 40 tonnemaximum lift capacity and can handle5.4 tonnes at up to 80 metres. Deying is currently looking for dealers in Europe for its CE markedTC7030 saddle-jib tower crane.Maximum jib length is 70 metres,at which the crane can lift threetonnes, while maximum capacity is12 tonnes with a115 metre underhook height.

The company says the new cranecombines existing features that arepopular with customers - with somenew modifications - such as fastererecting and dismantling times witheasier transportation. The newcrane's 75 metre jib length and relevant lifting capabilities, requiresa 21.7 metre counter jib which istoo long for transport on a standardtruck. To overcome this, Potain engineers have incorporated a neathinge mechanism, allowing this

section to fold for transport.

Customers will also benefit from the configuration options availableas the crane's jib sections are interchangeable other Potain MDTcranes - the 268 and 308. A choiceof mast sections is also availableeither the standard two by twometre or the larger 2.45 metre K mast.

Maximum height-under-hook is 93.7 metres and for both versionsthere is a choice of hoists with

either the 55kW 75 or 75kW 100LVF 30 Optima units. On the MDT368 L16 there is also a new trolley,

the 6 DVF 6 which can reachspeeds of 100 metres a minute with a four tonne load.

Potain's new MDT 368 features a hinged counterjib that folds for transport

Jost designers say that its hydraulic luffing jib systemoffers greater safety against accidents involving an unexpected gust of wind from the front of the crane,compared to a conventional rope luffing jib system. Thisallows it to park its jib at the maximum angle overnight,ideal on very compact or tight job sites. The Jost JTL208.12 is the largest of four models with a hydraulic luffing jib, the others have 40, 45 and 50 metre jib lengths.

Jost says the new 200 tonne/metre crane is designed forchallenging construction and erection jobs. It intends to

market the crane worldwide, but the first unit is workingin the UK.

All Jost cranes and mast systems are designed fortransport via standard containers and its Cacon system -a combination of cabin and electric cabinet - is connectedto the crane by way of a simple plug and socket.

As well as its 68 to 616 tonne metre luffing cranes, Jostoffers a series of topless saddle cranes from 72 to 712tonne/metres.

Available in English and German,the user goes through an initial individual registration beforeaccessing a complete cost overview.The configurator allows customersto choose defined variants accordingto their individual requirements.

“Many of our global customers needdetailed information on our products,irrespective of place and workinghours and in turn a performance andcost appropriate solution for theirprojects,” says Klaus Buch, originatorof the configurator and WolffkranEuropean sales manager. “We werethe first crane manufacturer providingdetailed crane data online such asloads on the support frame, centralballast weights or scaled CAD data.The online crane configurator is the

direct result of continuous develop-ment of our premium customerservice.”

Only a few clicks away The complete range of cranes isavailable on the system which alsoincludes Wolffkran's rental fleet. A pre-selection can be made by entering a specific requirementsuch as the lifting capacity or jibradius or by entering the desiredcrane type. This is then followed byentering the required hook height,crane base and hoisting winch performance. The appropriate craneis then configured within seconds.The impacts on the required centralballast weight and also on theresulting support frame loads areshown immediately. The user can

also see alternative configurationsand then download a scale drawingof the selected crane, as an AutoCad or PDF file. Time consuming,self created and imprecise drawingsare replaced by digital drawings.The dwg-files - which can be edited -are also directly transferable into thedrafts for the proposed machineryplanning for the building site.

Customised registrationRegistered users benefit from seeing not only the prices of thechosen crane configuration, butalso the estimated assembly costs.

Wolffkran says that once registered,the system can always recognisethe user and further process simplifications can be easily integrated. So for example any customer discounts are automatically saved for the specific cost calculation. The digital supply and demand interface simplifies the processengineering for fleet managers and construction site planners.

“Our objective was to provide

Configure it out Wolffkran has launched a new online crane configurator allowing itscustomers to configure their Wolffkran fleet around the clock from anywhere in the world, using simple internet access and a regular web browser to obtain proposals and alternatives as well as differentiated costs including information on whether to buy or rent.

MéthoCAD is launching 20 new modules this spring, including anupgrade to its existing package for tower cranes which allows theuser to select the type and size ofmobile crane needed to dismantle the crane. This is particularly usefulwhen a site is nearing completion,and the space around the tower craneis more restricted than envisaged atthe original planning stage.

The new module allows the user tocheck the required mobile crane boomlength, its angle and the loads allowedto safely dismantle the tower crane. The software shows easy to understanddiagrammatic visualisation of the planand elevation of the crane, showing the

tower cranes c&a


Jost luffer

concise information in an innovative and reliable format, especially for the crane rental segment” adds Buch.

You can try out the crane configurator onhttp://krankonfigurator.wolffkran.de/

German tower crane manufacturer, Jost, has launched its latest new model, the JTL 208.12 which features a 55 metre jib and a maximum lift capacity of 12 tonnes. The company now has more than 100hydraulic luffing cranes operating in the UK alone, thanks to the countries over-sailing legislation.

New MéthoCAD modules loads at each position of the crane hook.

Also checked are the access roads - widths and turning radius - to ensurethat the mobile is also able to reach the set-up point and that it has therequired space and clearance distances to position the outriggers.

Contractor McAlpine is using eight PotainMD285 tower craneswith jibs varying from 50 to 65 metres with heights underhook ranging between 45.9 metresand 60.9 metres. Maximum capacity of the MD285 is 12 tonneswith jib tip capacities of 4.5, 3.7,

The 2012 Olympic stadium in theLower Lea Valley in Stratford,London is beginning to take shapewith the help of eight Potain towercranes. Construction of the stadium - designed by Sir PeterCrook and HOK Sport - began lastMay and is believed to be costingabout £470 million.


tower cranesc&a

Stafford Tower Cranes - Linden Comansa dealer in Ireland - has suppliedthree flat-top cranes from the Spanish manufacturer for the constructionof Ireland's National Conference Centre.

The Centre has been designed by Kevin Roche, one of Ireland's most renowedarchitects and winner of the Pritzker Prize for Architecture. One of his most

Potain at theOlympics

3.1 and 2.65 tonnes for the 50, 55, 60 and 65 metre jibs respectively.Foundations are nearing completionwith about 4,000 piles alreadyinstalled making way for the

10,000 tonnes of steel to be used in the superstructure apparentlymaking it the lightest Olympic stadium to date.

Eight Potain MD285 tower cranes are being used for the Olympic stadium.

A total of 14 Wolff cranes are being used on theÜberseequartier - in the HafenCity Hamburg, Germany

Dublin National Conference Centrepopular creations is the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York.

This landmark building is being built in the central Spencer Docks area, closeto one of Dublin's most popular tourist spots - the ship 'Jeanie Johnston' - a replica of a wooden sailing ship built in Quebec in 1847, which carried hundreds of Irish emigrants to the United States and Canada during the

Irish Potato famine of the mid 19th century.

The three cranes - all 21 LC 290 models - have been working onsite since 2007 and will continue until completion of the project inlate spring of this year, although the venue is not expected to openuntil 2010.

The 21 LC 290 has a maximum capacity of 18 tonnes with 2.7tonnes at the jib tip. It has a maximum freestanding height of 64.9metres and a maximum jib length of 74 metres. The cranes havebeen climbed to more than 80 metres to meet project requirements.

Spencer Dock Convention Centre Dublin has been chosen by theIrish Government for the design, build and finance of the venue, aswell as operating it for 25 years, after which the facility will revertto the State. During this period, Ireland will pay the company anannual charge, for a total investment of €380 million. TheGovernment expects the venue to be a new landmark site forIreland and key for its tourist and economic development over thenext few years.

During the last twelve months, Stafford Tower Cranes has expandedits activities beyond Ireland and is now active in a Joint Venturepartnership as official Linden Comansa dealer in Dubai (United ArabEmirates) and has plans for further expansion in the future.

Ireland's new National Conference Centre is being built in the Spencer Docks area of Dublin, very close to

the 'Jeanie Johnston' a replica of a wooden sailing ship which carried hundreds of Irish emigrants to the US and Canada during the 19th century Irish Potato famine

Ireland's new National Conference Centre is being built in the Spencer Docks area of Dublin, very close to

the 'Jeanie Johnston' a replica of a wooden sailing ship which carried hundreds of Irish emigrants to the US and Canada during the 19th century Irish Potato famine

A pack of WolffsThe new residential and business quarter - Überseequartier - in theHafenCity Hamburg, Germany is employing seven different Wolff towercrane models, with a total of 14 cranes currently on site. Started in 2007the work, which is situated between the river Alster and river Elbe, is notscheduled for completion until 2011/12 although the first phases are dueto be finished this May when the cranes will be dismantled.

Maximum use was made of the tower cranes during assembly, reducing theneed for additional mobile cranes. The Wolff 4517 city was erected by aWolff 6531.12 cross, and a Wolff 71SL was assembled by a Wolff 5520.6.The cranes were erected in six phases with the largest a Wolff 6522 FL 6/12having an under the hook height of 84.3 metres and a 55 metre jib capable ofa maximum lift of 12 tonnes and 2.9 tonnes at maximum radius.

The new eight hectare Überseequartier will be home to 1,000 people, a work place for up to 7,000, while 40,000 are expected to use the leisure and shopping facilities.

Main contractor for the 80 million project isGreek-based Technicaanonima Pantechniki withthe help of Rumanian construction companyBog'art SRL.

Built on the main road between Bucharest's citycentre and the Henry Coanda International Airport,the two 18 storey City Gate Towers - each 75metres high - will form the gateway to the ROM-EXPO Trade Fair Centre.

Construction work began in the summer of 2007and involves four flat top cranes - three 110 EC-B 6FR.tronic and one 130 EC-B 6 FR.tronic, along withtwo 32 H fast-erecting units. The cranes were built

Somewhere over the rooftops High above the city of Hamburg, refurbishment work is currently being carried out on a 1970's public administration building to convert it to the latest German heat and insulation requirements. The work is complicated as the building will remain in use throughout. Hamburg construction company Theo Urbach is using a new 180 tonne/metre Terex Comedil CTT181/B-8 flat top tower crane which was delivered by Terex distributor Proschwitz.

The Comedil CTT 181/B-8 has a maximum lifting capacity of eight tonnes and maximum jib length of65 metres with 1.9 tonnes capacity at the tip. The modular jib system, tower element connectionsand cross-shaped base structure - allow fast, easy erection, while lightweight components make itpossible to use a small mobile crane for erection.

Joachim Wulf, president of Theo Urbach said: “This crane size is always in high demand when itcomes to our construction projects. Terex Comedil provides the quality and performance that weexpect at an excellent price/performance ratio.”

Six Liebherr tower cranes - four EC-B series flat-tops and two fast-erecting series H - arebeing used on the two year construction of the City Gate office complex project in theRomanian capital of Bucharest.


The twin towersin Spain by Liebherr-Industrias Metálicas ofPamplona and delivered directly to site. Theflat-top cranes feature the 'Connect and Work'system which has a completely pre-installedcompact head element, quick-action fasteningsfor jibs and counter-jibs and the patentedLiConnect connection system.

The cranes are mounted on Liebherr's 120 HCtower system and climbed in five metre increments to hook heights of 91.5 metres and101.6 metres. The cranes also feature steplessdrive systems which allow precision positioningwhen lifting loads up to six tonnes.

The world's first hydraulic lift of a Jostcrane recently took place at The Cube inBirmingham. BuildAbility - BirminghamDevelopment Company's construction arm- raised the two specially designed JostJT312 topless cranes - supplied by LondonTower Cranes - from 54 and 63 metres to their full height of 99 and 101metresrespectively.

Unusually, the cranes are painted black inkeeping with The Cube brand and are thoughtto be the first black tower cranes to be seenin the UK since Buckingham Palace was constructed. Specifically made base towersections were produced so that both cranescould meet The Cube's 70 metre finishedheight when completed in spring 2010.

Installed in just under six hours, the German-built climbing frame was fixed onto the cranetower to allow the hydraulic jacking of theframe and careful insertion of six new towersections, each measuring six metres in height.

The Cube is a 23 storey mixed use buildingwhich will include a boutique hotel, waterside cafés, designer retail stores,offices, 244 apartments of which well overhalf have already been sold and a rooftoprestaurant let to D&D London, formerlyConran. The building is encased in an intricate anodised aluminium fretwork whileinside an open glass atrium twists as itclimbs the height of the building.

A world first tower cranes c&a

The first climb of a Jost crane.

Until relatively recently the aeriallifts of choice for most utilitycompanies has been the truck orvan mounted boom lift. Oddly thetower wagon has virtuallyvanished from the scene and itspotential replacement, the truckmounted scissor lift has so farfailed to take off.

Van and light truck mounted boomlifts are ideal for street work andongoing development by themanufacturers working with utilitycontractors is making the latestproducts even more useful.

Utility companies and their contractors were some ofthe very first users of powered access, helping developlight tower wagons to service and maintain overheadlighting and cables on early street lights and tram/ buscables. Since those early days the sector has blossomedto include high tension transmission lines, telephonecables, street lighting, mobile phone and othertransmission antennae, water towers and asurprising array of other tasks.

Overheadwork setto change

Zero tail-swing and narrow orno-outrigger configurations allowwork to be carried out on overheadlines without taking up more thana single lane of the street, thuskeeping it open even if restricted.

With this in mind the UK Health &Safety Executive has been steadilyincreasing the pressure on utilitycompanies to stop the long-heldpractice of climbing poles to carryout maintenance or repairs. It hasbeen doing this in several waysincluding the use of the hierarchy ofaccess methods which almostinvariably point to the use of poweredaccess over and above climbing orladders. It has also been imposingstrict rules or recommendations forthe lower level methods such asclimbing and ladder use whichserves to make the employment ofpowered access simpler and morestraightforward.

The problem has been, as in all suchinitiatives by the HSE, a wideregional variation on the applicationand interpretation of such rules. Insome regions utility contractorshave reported being stopped andwarned for using a ladder or poleclimbing even when they have beenusing recommended work practicesand have carried out all of the relevantequipment testing and paperwork,including risk assessments andmethod statements. In order to clearup such variations Balfour Beatty,one of the UK's largest Utilitycontractors called a meeting of all

power distribution contractors todiscuss the issue and to provide aforum for the HSE to discuss itsapproach and help develop anunderstanding with contractors.

The meeting turned into a highlyfocused event with a number ofspecialist access equipmentmanufacturers attending andlending their support.

A key presentation - The legal context of working at height onwood poles - was made by HMInspector of Health and Safety, NeilHope-Collins. He made it very clearto delegates that the HSE regardedthe climbing of poles within anurban environment as a last resort or for special circumstances. He pointed out that the use ofMobile Elevating Work Platformscomes above that of fall protection.When pole climbing is deemed the best method for a job, the HSE insists on prescriptive requirements for rope access andwork positioning. This includes theuse of two separately anchoredlines, harnesses connected to both, a self locking ascender/descender and that the safety line has a mobile fall protection system. In summary all of thismakes the use of aerial work platforms seem simple and straightforward, not to mention safer and more efficient.

An early tower wagon

The preferred methodof working on overheadpower lines

The UK HSE islooking to makepole climbing athing of the past

The HSE hasprescriptiveguidelines forclimbing,including duallines andclimbing irons


utilitiesc&a

constructed during the 1950's aspart of the rural electrificationprogramme and considerableexpansion has occurred since. Withsuch a large part of the networknow over 50 years old, the volumeof refurbishment and replacementwork is set to escalate, not to mention plans to improve the network capability to meet futuredemands.

Transmission towermaintenance

There are more than 80,000 hightension transmission towers in theUK alone, just 22,000 of which areowned and maintained by the NationalGrid. These tend to be double circuittypes with a single, centrally mounted


ut i l i t ies c&aThis line from the HSE was hardly asurprise and follows a trend that ithas been increasingly stepping upover the past two years or so. Whatwas perhaps more surprising was aclear statement from Hope-Collinsthat the HSE will begin to call timeon the climbing of poles in moreremote and difficult to reachlocations. Until now climbing poles'off-piste' has been accepted on thebasis that equipment was notavailable to reach such locationsand therefore climbing the onlypractical method.

However the range of equipmentavailable is now so wide that the'excuses for not using MEWPs insuch locations' no longer applies.He suggested that the HSE will beencouraging utility contractors touse more aerial lifts and will be lesstolerant of accidents in suchlocations. He pointed out some keyexamples of equipment which isnow available, ranging from LandRover and Unimog mountedplatforms to tracked spider liftswith up to 50 metres workingheights, not to mention even morehighly specialised access equipmentmounted on tractors and crawlers.

An aerial lift fitted toUnimog chassis will go

almost anywhere

Access Hierarchy 1

• Mobile Elevated Work Platform

(MEWP) and approved body

harness attached inside bucket

by lanyard.

Or

• Approved scaffolding or fixed

platform and approved harness

Access Hierarchy 2

Ladders with approved harness

and fall arrest. They should

be footed and top-tied where

reasonable.

Access Hierarchy 3

Climbing irons, approved

harness and pole choker

Conductors (power lines)are replaced in 4km sections

over 12 towers

The platform inposition, typically

staffed by three people

The platform iswinched into position installation and setting-up of a safe

form of access equipment. Installersmust climb the tower to fit theattachment points for the platform tobe suspended from the cross arm.The platform is then winched intoposition either vertically or horizontally and then suspendedcentrally and kept level betweentwo ground anchors or winchassemblies. The work can nowcommence and the whole processtypically takes around three hours to set up and two hours to movebetween towers.

There are typically three linesmenworking from the platform, each oneclimbing the tower an average offive times in a normal day in orderto reach the platform. A linesmanwill remain at work in the platformworking for an hour at a stretch.Some utility contractors havealready started to use large truckmounts where possible or large spider lifts where the ground doesnot allow to carry out this work,both saving the most of the set uptime as well as the time and dangersof climbing the towers. Manyexperienced linesmen still swear bythe traditional method and are reluctant to change. However pressure from the HSE will eventuallyforce this change, if efficiency savings don't get it done first.

An aging networkWood poles are typically used forvoltages ranging from low voltageup to and including 132kV. A considerable part of the UK's distribution network was

earth wire. The lines must berefurbished every 30 to 40 years with all of the conductors, insulators, fittings and earth wires beingreplaced on both circuits.

The conductors are typically changedout in lengths of around four kilometreswhich involves a span that includesan average of 12 towers. Platformaccess is required at both ends and onaverage at two intermediate towersin the four kilometre section.

Strip outsThe replacement of conductors,insulators, fittings and earth wires isa major task in its own right, not somuch the work itself, but the


the work to be carried out withoutthe need for any climbing, manuallifting or complex co-ordination ofwinches and anchors. Less earthingand equipment is required and of

course the platform can be positionedin exactly the right position to suitthe linesman, allowing him to workmore efficiently and with lesschance of strain.

A linesman installing the working trolleys.

An alternative is to use a lift to place thetrolleys which is proving to be faster andsafer.

Linesmen in Denmark using a crane with platform and loader crane for transmissiontower maintenance

utilitiesc&aAn increasingnumber ofcontractorsare usingpoweredaccess

Spider lifts can reach some ofthe most remote towers

An alternative being tested is for alinesman to use a spider or rough terrain vehicle mounted lift to carry thetrolley to the top conductors. He 'lands'the trolley onto the lines and transfersfrom the lift to the trolley. A secondoperator at the base of the machinethen uses the lower controls to lowerthe lift and then repeats the exercisefor the middle conductors and then thesame for the lower.

Danish rules OK

The HSE is looking to follow theDanish rules where the climbing oftowers is only permitted for one-offinspections. Solutions in Denmarkhave included the use of large AllTerrain cranes equipped with largeplatforms and a specially modifiedloader crane attached to the crane’sboom nose. The combination allows

De-spaceringAnother task is de-spacering, in whichthe linesmen work from a trolleywhich travels on the power lines/conductors. Traditionally the linesmanclimbs the tower to set up a wincharrangement and sits on the top lines -or conductors - while the winch raisesthe top trolley into position. Once thetrolley is landed onto the top conductors the linesman assists inlanding the trolleys onto the lower lines.


ut i l i t ies c&a

Pole placing and service truck

Regional electricity company,United Utilities, has purchasedtwo new Unimog U5000s fittedwith 16 tonne/metre Hiab cranes,possibly the largest crane fittedto such a vehicle.

The machines are used for carryingelectricity supply poles, while therear-mounted Hiab XS144 Hi Procranes provide the reach and liftingability to place the poles exactlywhere they are needed. The cranehas a reach of up to 13 metreswhile the poles range in weightfrom 200 to 750kg. Even afterallowing for the crane's weight of2.5 tonnes the Unimog's payload ismore than enough to carry the polesand the wide range of additionalequipment that the overhead linemaintenance teams require.

The Hiab's conventional H shapeoutrigger footprint has been

replaced with an X configuration,which allows the crane to operatein a wider range of off-road locations.

United Utilities transport managerGraham Davies says: “There is simply no alternative to the Unimog.The central tyre inflation system,where tyres can be deflated andinflated from the cab, not only provides extra traction on difficultground, but spreads the 'footprint' sothat ground damage is considerablyreduced. This saves us up to £2,000a time in compensation to thelandowner or farmer.”

United Utilities operates throughoutthe North-West of England and the new Unimog U5000s are strategically based in Workingtonand Kendal, covering the remotenetworks of Cumbria and the LakeDistrict. There are plans for a third,which will be based in theMacclesfield area.

United also has three UnimogU3000s on order which are beingfitted with Versalift Eurotel ET36NFboom lifts with a two-man bucket,13.2 metres working height andoutreach of 7.3 metres for overheadline maintenance operations.

The new vehicles join a fleet ofolder Unimogs, some of which havebeen working for 11 years. TheUnimog U2150 with a fully insulatedplatform for Live Line work is theoldest unit in the fleet and is stilloperating efficiently and effectively.

“Unimogs play a key role in thetransport fleet,” says Davies. “Wemay have to go out at midnight inthe worst possible weather conditions, and the driver and creware confident that they can get tothe site, complete the job and getback safely.”

and occasionally continentalEurope.

The Unimog U500s haul the rigs onspecially designed trailers on boththe highway and then off-road. The alternative, says BrendanHenderson, Boart Longyear’s operation manager for UK DrillingServices, is at least two vehicles -one to haul on road and another toget them to sites in remote locations.

Two of the Unimogs are fittedPalfinger cranes and two with PMcranes, each capable of lifting up to4.5 tonne or 880kg to nine metres.These enable dual-skin fuel or watertanks and a wide range of othertools and equipment to be carriedand off-loaded on site.

The 100C sonic drilling rigs havebeen designed and built by BoartLongyear for drilling to depths of up

the roadKing offThe Mercedes Benz Unimog is almost unparralled inits off road abilities. Combined with good road manners it makes it the vehicle of choice for utilitycompanies for reaching remote locations with aerial work platforms and small cranes. Here are a few typical applications.

United Utilities uses this unit with16t/m crane to deliver and place

poles in remote locations

The Unimog U500 isequipped with a craneand a trailer to providefast on-road and all-terrainability to deliver thedrilling rig direct to theworking site

to 50 metres producing high qualitycore samples without the need for aflushing medium. Sonic drilling isfaster than conventional cable percussive, direct push or hollowstem auger methods and is effective

Drilling and support vehicle Boart Longyear is using a fleet offour Mercedes-Benz long wheelbaseUnimog U550S equipped with loadercranes, to haul 100C sonic drillingrigs to drill sites in the UK, Ireland

in loose materials through to solidrock. Investigative derived waste isreduced by as much as 80 percent,which combines with less time on-site to offer significant environmental benefits.

The Unimogs and rigs are based inCentral Scotland, but their on-roadability and efficient fuel consumptionallow them to operate throughoutthe UK and even as far afield asPoland. After the rig has been off-loaded from the trailer, theUnimog can operate as an all-terrainsupport vehicle delivering fuel,water and other supplies to sites inurban areas as well as the mostremote locations.

Live line work on the increase

Live line work is still relatively rarein most of Europe, although in NorthAmerica it is common place. Withhigh energy costs now the norm,

electricity suppliers are comingunder increasing pressure againstpower outages and disruption. This is having a number of knock on effects, including a greaterinvestment in national distribution

probably the largest and has itseyes on expanding in Europe,although progress is slow and sporadic.

Versalift on the other hand, isalready well established andexpanding its product offering. Itsays that it has seen a significantincrease in demand for insulatedbooms, not only for electrical suppliers, but also for trades suchas tree surgeons with contracts tokeep trees near power linestrimmed. Some tree companies inthe USA are already moving to an

cranes. A significant number ofthese are shipped to the USA andCanada where it has a large customer base. It has thoughshipped SI units all around theworld to countries includingAustralia, Upper Volta, Ghana,Indonesia, Kazakstan, South Africa -where the company has recentlysupplied a 60 metre 765000 V toEskom, Saudi Arabia and the UAE.The company has also been calledon to produce large crawler mounted boom lifts for working onthe more remote transmission towers. One such unit was recentlysupplied to Hydro-One in Canada.

Insulator washingBronto has also sold several unitsinto the sector for washing transmission tower line insulators.In many environments line insulators frequently become contaminated with salt, dust, industrial pollution and bird droppings and need cleaning.Contamination can create a conductive path on the surface ofthe insulator, causing 'flash over'which can result in expensivepower interruptions and damage.

To reduce this eventuality many utility companies have successfullyimplemented preventive insulatorwashing programmes fitting live-lineinsulator washing equipment toboth insulated and non-insulatedtruck mounted booms. Bronto hasfitted several units with an integrated insulator washing capability to provide real multi-purpose vehicles. The washingequipment can either be operatedfrom the platform or from theground using remote controls.

ut i l i t ies c&a

The Unimog can also operate as an all-terrain support vehicle delivering fuel, water and other supplies to sites in urban or remote, difficult to reach locations

Live line - Hot glove

work is on the increase

in Europe


Bronto has placed some of its larger boom lifts on crawler chassis

A Bronto SI truck mounted lift makes its way to a remote location

Power washing high tension insulators

Two Versalift VST235I insulated platforms on Unimogs for delivery to Scottish and Southern

all insulated fleet following a number of fatalities where tree trimmers have come into contactwith power lines that they had notrealised were there.

Bronto, the Finnish-based truckmounted lift producer manufacturessome of the largest insulatedbooms. Its SI range offers workingheights of up to 60 metres, with860kg lift capacity, shorter chassis,all wheel drive, differential locks andtight turning circles giving themsimilar capabilities to All Terrain

systems and in fully insulated aeriallifts. The number of manufacturersregularly building such equipment is small. Altec, the US-based craneand aerial lift manufacturer is

batteriesc&a

Given that the majority of aerial liftsare powered by batteries, this ageingfleet will push battery replacementtowards the top of many fleets’maintenance and repair costs.

The fact is that while batteries area major cost for most fleets theyalso present a massive opportunityto save money. Most companiescould halve their annual batteryreplacement costs with a fewsimple measures.

Buying the right batteryMost aerial lift fleet operators nowappreciate that all batteries are notcreated equal. This is more truenow than ever, with a flood ofcheap batteries coming in fromChina, most of which are whollyunsuited to aerial lift applications.When it comes to the most widelyused six volt 220 amp/hour deepcycle battery, most of the bestmodels are still made in the USA,where they are produced in highvolume for both aerial lifts and golfcarts. The two most prominentmanufacturers are Trojan with itsdistinctive maroon case and USBatteries with its popular quickrelease top-up caps. Othermanufacturers include Crown andDouglas, neither of which havetargeted the European accessindustry yet, at least in terms ofthe replacement market.

cheap batteries are. The table belowshows the cost of cheap batteriesover a five year period for a typicalsmall scissor lift, the better batteriesproduce a minimum saving of £665- that's £133 per year. For a fleet of200 units this equates to £26,600 a year! Add in some regularmaintenance to extend the goodbatteries life and the saving canjump to over £1,000, that's £200

With most major buyers of aerial lifts intending tobuy far fewer machines this year having alreadyreduced purchases in 2008, the average age of mostaerial lift rental fleets is set to grow.

a year on a machine that onlycosts around £6,500.

Look after themOnce you have chosen a decentset of batteries the next significantsaving is to look after them.It is no secret that the average lifeof a decent battery when fitted to agolf cart is five years. Yet when thesame battery is used in the accessrental industry life expectancy ishalved. Why? Battery makers havelooked at the installation and typicalutilisation of aerial lifts compared togolf carts and abuse and lack ofmaintenance jumps out every time.Some say that the typical use ofan aerial lift with fewer deepdischarges during a typical workingday, suggest that batteries in aeriallifts ought to outlast those used in

golf carts. Anecdotal evidence of aset of batteries lasting over 10years supports this notion. Somecompanies argue that the high costof labour makes it more cost effectiveto simply replace the batteries everytwo to three year, rather than maintainthem regularly. However the key factorsthat will extend the life of a battery isto ensure it is always topped up withdistilled water and regularly charged.

This alone can double the life of aset of good batteries, and of courseyou have the benefit that properlymaintained batteries are less likelyto let a good customer down.

Keep them chargedLead acid batteries, like most othertypes, will loose their charge overthe period of a few weeks and nothing destroys lead acid batteriesfaster than allowing them to bedrained of all power. Most new liftsuse some form of motor controlwhich incorporates a low voltagecut-out, stopping the machine oncethe battery charge falls below 20percent of full charge, thus avoidingthe old problem of users drivingthem to destruction. However if thebatteries are drained to 20 percentand then parked up uncharged for a

When it comes to full tractionforklift type batteries used in largerelectric powered lifts, such as thelarger scissor lifts built by HollandLift and JLG-Liftlux, the bestproducts are more local withcompanies such as Exide, whichsells such batteries through itsmotive power division under theDeta, Classic and Tudor brands,among others. The fact is that thecost of replacing such batteries isenormous and can in the worstcase devastate a unit’s profitabilityin the rental environment. It istherefore worth considering addingautomatic battery monitoring andtop-up equipment, because iflooked after, such batteries will lasta good 10 years, so replacementneed not be a regular consideration.

Cheap batteries cost dearly, lastingjust over a year even when lookedafter, compare this to two to fiveyears for decent batteries and itbecomes clear just how expensive

Good practicesaves ££££$$$$

A set of Trojan batteries - standardequipment with many manufacturers

The other big suppler of batteries on newaerial lifts note the quick release filler caps.

A typicalfull traction batterypack found on bigscissor lifts

Crown batteries are used by MEC andcould soon be more widerly availableon the replacement market

Douglas batteries have been usedby JLG in the USA

A typicalfull traction batterypack found on bigscissor lifts

Automatic watertop up is a goodinvestment with fulltraction batteries

*Assumes cheap batteries costing £50 each replacing every year compared to good qualitybatteries costing £70 each replaced every two and a half years. Labour costs to order, fit andrecycle £75 per battery change over. Does not include any call out costs due to batteryfailure on site which could easily double the change over cost.

Cheap batteries Quality batteries

Cost of batteries 4 x £50 each = £200 4 x £70 each = £280

Number of changes

in five years 5 2

Total cost of batteries 5 x £200 = £1,000 2 x £280 £560

Replacement Labour £375 £150

Total cost £1,375 £710

Cost of batteries for small scissor lifts over five years



batter ies c&a

week of two they will drain downclose to empty and the damage isdone, add to this the fact that somechargers will not work on empty batteries and you can see howunnecessary costs start to creep in.If aerial lifts are automatically put oncharge at the end of the day or onreturn to the rental yard, this will domore than anything to boost batterylife. Add in a quick fluid check andyou could easily be looking at that£1,000 a unit saving over five years.

Other dangers include long delaysin collecting a rental unit. If themachine is off-hired and parked upat the end of a contract and thennot collected for a week, thebatteries are likely to be drained.The same applies when utilisationis low and units are left sitting inthe yard for extended periods.It is worth giving someone theresponsibility to routinely chargemachines that are standing.

This might also be something tocheck when buying a new machine,if a lift has been in stock for anextended period, it is worth checkingif the battery has been kept charged

and if not request a new setbatteries or at least a two yearguarantee on them.

Trojan goes with IPSTrojan batteries, possibly the mostwell recognised battery in the aeriallift business and its master distributorEnergy Batteries has appointedIndependent Parts & Service (IPS)as its access equipmentdistributor for the UK.

IPS has for the past few years soldUS batteries under an agreementwith its master distributor ManBat.With a majority of manufacturersnow fitting Trojan batteries in theirnew products, and its high recognitionlevels, there was clearly an attractionfor IPS to have the Trojan dealership.The company aims to offer sameday and next day deliveries for all ofits aerial lift batteries. Energy saysthat it can do this thanks to the factthat it has invested in substantialwarehouses and delivery fleets inScotland, Northern Ireland and at itsheadquarters in Corby, England. Inaddition the company is putting thefinal touches to a new network of

35 independent stockists. Energysays that it has taken care to findlocal owner operated dealers in order to offer a personal service with lower overheads. The two companies will also work togetheron extending Energy's battery recycling programme to all of its aerial lift customers.

Gel or not?A number of battery suppliers nowoffer deep cycle gel batteriestargeted at the aerial lift andcompact crane market. The majorbenefits include the fact that theydo not require any maintenance, arespill proof and do not gas, makingthem ideal for sensitive or cleanapplications such as hospitals orfood processing facilities.

usable capacity and even good onesbarely last 18 months of regular use.So unless they are needed for specialapplications then it is clearly noteconomically viable, at least untilthe technology improves. One thingto watch out for if you do decide tobuy a gel battery is confusion withAGM - the alternative sealed battery.AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) batteriesare cheaper than gel but use a totallydifferent technology. They are bestused for standby applications andnot at all suited to deep cycle applications, although at least onecompany has been trialing a deepcycle AGM battery.

Recycling made easyWestern Europe is already very goodat recycling lead acid batteries,

thanks to their relatively high scrapvalue. Most battery organisationssay that 90 percent of all suchbatteries are already recycled.However in recent years the rulesthroughout the EU have changedconcerning the storage of oldbatteries and how they are recycled.In the UK the detail of the regulationsis complicated a little by the factthat they are different in Scotland,Northern Ireland and England &Wales. However the principlesremain the same and while theyseem complex at first glance, can besimplified by working with a decentbattery supplier or one of the largenational battery recyclers such as G&P.

By now most UK rental companieswill have already registered as aHazardous Waste Producer with the

However is it worth switching yourwhole fleet to gel? The experts sayNo. First of all they are 50 percentmore expensive to buy than a goodquality wet battery. They have less

Average battery life is significantlyextended through regular routine charging

Trojan is one company nowoffering a deep cycle gel battery

This is all too often the waybatteries are stored by access

rental companies


designed to meet all of the relevantregulations and once full a simplecall will have it collected and replacedwith a new bin. Companies mustcomplete, sign and keep a copy of aconsignment note for every scrapbattery movement and pay a fee to the environment Agency for the pleasure.

Suppliers recommend that rentalcompanies involve delivery driversand service engineers with the recycling efforts, offering thema percentage of the scrap proceedsin order to encourage them to playan active role with the recyclingprocess.

Use a battery bank

Most good battery distributors ormajor recyclers will provide youwith a battery bank in which toplace your old batteries whilewaiting collection. G&P batteryrecycling suggest the following tips.

•A battery bank is specific to eitherlead acid or non lead acid batteries.it can be dangerous to mix 'wet' carbatteries with any other types ofbatteries.

Environment Agency, a requirementif you replace lead acid batteries,not to mention the other wasteproducts generated by liftingequipment. If by some quirk youhave not yet registered, and youneed to for every location where oldbatteries will be stored and recycled,registration can be done on-line, overthe phone or by post andcurrently costs £23 a year.

Batteries awaiting collection must bestored safely and only passed on toa battery collection company that isregistered with the EnvironmentAgency as a carrier of controlledwaste. They will not collect unlessyou are registered. Selling your batteries to an itinerant scrap collector is no longer an option -you are responsible for the batterieseven after they have been collectedand fines can be steep for abusingthe rules - up to £5,000. You couldeven be liable if someone breaks intoyour premises and steals the batteries!

Many battery suppliers or recyclers,including G&P and EnergyBatteries/IPS will place one of theirpurpose built recycle bins at acustomer's premises. These bins are

tampered with, such as drillingholes in it. It is imperative that itremains leakproof.

•If it has to be outside and exposedto the rain a lid is required to preventit filling up with water. Do notempty the water out of a containerthat has waste batteries in it.The water may be contaminatedwith battery acid and is thereforeclassed as hazardous waste.

•A battery bank must be storedin a secure area, which is notaccessible to the public when thesite is unattended. If the contentsof the battery bank are stolen, thiswould mean that you are allowingHazardous waste to be removedfrom your premises by anunauthorised collector and youcould face prosecution.

•A battery bank should never be

A modern battery bank

batteriesc&a


2008 reviewc&a softwarec&a

Third time roundWhen Malcolm and Ben Bowersstarted Lifterz a couple of years ago, it was unusual in that it wasMalcolm's third rental businessstart up following the originalAccess Rentals and AFI. With allhis experience he was well awareof the benefits a good rental systemcan bring to the business, and therewas no question of muddling bywithout one. He also appreciatedthe one-off opportunity of gettingit right at the start having selectedand lived with other systemsduring his career.

He was looking for an easy-to-use,reliable system which could easilycope with future growth plans andexpansion that the two had in mind.He says that he was also keen toavoid the crashes, frozen screensand reboots he had lived with in thepast. Selecting the right supplierwas therefore crucial and the twospent time to make sure thatthey got it right.

“I was determined toavoid the crashes, frozen

screens and rebootsof the past”

Bowers wanted to make sure thesystem would cope with everyaspect of their business from workshop,training documentation and recordkeeping to efficient order booking,scheduling and invoicing.

In the end the pair chose the SyrinxHire Management System fromCaversham-based Higher ConceptSoftware, which provided all thefeatures they were looking for includingworkshop/servicing and damagecharging with digital photographs.It also included staff developmentand the ability to record qualificationsheld by each machine operator.

appreciate our customers takingthe time and effort to visit us at theshow and we wanted to give somethingback. These complimentary workshopswill help our customers to maximisethe return from the investment theyhave made in IT, and hopefully helpstrengthen and drive their businessforward in 2009.”

Inspired mobilityAnother highly popular rentalsoftware system in the UK andIreland, particularly for poweredaccess companies is that offered byInspHire, which has recently addeda number of new developments targeted at the sector. InspHireMobileWorking offers clients accessto real time information from GPRS

With many crane and access companies concernedover the uncertainty in the economy and preparingstrategies to cope with the expected slowdown inbusiness, the importance of good, fully integratedrental and business software, is more important thanever. Off-the-shelf systems are now better value withmore features than ever and can usually grow andadapt with the business.

Softwareupdate

MalcolmBowers

Ben Bowers of Lifterz

MobileWorking screen

enabled hand held devices, with theability to accept machine handoversignatures digitally. Photographscan also be stored against each unitboth before and after a rental aswell as for easy identification. Thisfeature can also help companies toachieve the IPAF Rental+ accreditationby managing paperwork requiredby the quality mark, includingdocumentation required by LOLER

regulations. It can store drivercertificates, hire desk personnel,equipment specification documentsand personnel certificates.

In addition all equipment is monitoredand 'Service Due' reports (for LOLER)with equipment location can be run.In short the system stores a full hireaudit trail with mandatory businessprocesses helping instil discipline atthe operational level as required byIPAF Rental+.

Web-based informationThe company's new WebPortalallows rental companies to providetheir customers with live informationabout equipment they have on hireat any time. Live data from the rentalcompany's system automaticallyupdates the WebPortal to ensurethat a company's customers,equipped with the relevant codes,have access to the most up to dateinformation on line which helps cutdown on calls for information andwork duplication. The inspHireWebPortal can also be used as amarketing tool by making it easy forcustomers to accurately order allthe equipment they need on line.

Web PortalHigher Concept order entry generates allnecessary certifications.

The system also highlights whenqualifications need renewal and thequalifications required for each typeof machine.

Bowers says the implementation ofthe Syrinx system was smooth andseamless, and that they were ableto go live immediately after installationand training. He also liked the factthat the invoice layout is tailored tothe company's customers ratherthan to the system. He says thatthe efficiencies and ease of use havepaid dividends in terms efficiency,customer satisfaction and keeping atight rein on the business, which ismore critical than ever given theuncertain times we face.

Higher Concept offered visitors to theExecutive Hire Show a free softwareworkshop run by HCS trainers, withexperience working directly in therental industry. They coveredareas such as CRM, Workshop,Purchasing, Stock Managementand Customer Servicing.

Higher Concept's sales and marketingdirector Katy Williams, said: “We


face to facec&a

Fuller was born in the leafy town ofMaidenhead, on the Thames, westof London. One of three children hehad an older brother and a twinsister. After leaving school he tookup a mechanical engineeringapprenticeship at GD Peters ofSlough, which made steel profilecutting tables, doors for theunderground and labelling machines.

After completing the apprenticeshiphe headed off to the Greek Islandsfor the summer, something herepeated over the next five years,taking casual retail work back inthe UK over the winter.

One year Fuller and his friendsattempted to cycle to Greece, givingup in Belgium and taking the train.Then while in Mirtiotissa on thewest coast of Corfu he met aGerman girl, Petra, who wouldbecome his wife. As that summerended he hitchhiked to Tehran tovisit a friend based there withThomas Cook. During his 10 weekstay he was told that he had wonsecond prize - £250 - in a competitionentitled 'The improper use ofladders', run by scaffold and laddermanufacturer Stephens & Carter.He had entered while working atMaidenhead Décor selling laddersand steps. The funds were wiredallowing him to answer the call oflove, taking a seven day bus trip toAustria and then hitching to Petra's

home in Lünen, near Dortmund.He moved in and stayed for twoand a half years, working on theroads, digging trenches in coalblack earth as well as in a factorybefore getting homesick.

Back to the UKWhile away his parents had relocatedto Southall, Nottinghamshire so theplan was for him to move back, finda job and a place to live so the couplecould set up home together in theUK. The year was 1980 and Fullerheaded for the employment exchangein nearby Newark, looking for a jobin sales. By chance he found anopening with Acklift the Southall-basedtruck and trailer mounted aerial liftcompany. He put a deposit downon a small terraced house, renteda van and went back for Petra.

The next three and half years werespent demonstrating and sellingAcklift products in the UK, principallyto local authorities and utilities.In late 1983 Acklift, received anenquiry from Böcker regarding thedistribution of its trailer lifts inGermany. Fuller was dispatched toGermany to visit the Werne-basedcompany. Böcker was alreadymanufacturing its range of laddertype material lifts, but also had theGenie distribution for Germany.Robert Böcker junior told Fuller thatGenie was looking for a salesmanfor the UK and Ireland. Impressedby the products, he called MalcolmCardy, Genie's European salesmanager, based in The Hague.Cardy suggested he come for aninterview. After the meeting Fullerhe was told that he was one of twoshort listed for the job, howeverGenie plumped for the other

candidate, who had distributionexperience while Fuller did not.Two weeks later however Cardycalled to say that the first candidatehad not worked out and offered himthe job which he accepted withouthesitation, becoming Genie'ssecond European employee.

Starting with GenieFuller’s first week was spent inHolland training with Karel Verhueland Rob de Jong at Novon. Nextstop was Seattle for a week on theproduction lines and then Missoula,Montana, travelling with RogerCurtis, ending up helping at anexhibition in Tacoma, Washington.Back in the UK he was kitted outwith a Mercedes 207D van and arange of demonstration equipmentincluding a Superlift, PLG and Air-Hoist.

Fuller's brief was to build up aregional dealer network in the UK,after ending a dealer arrangementwith Walter Summers. While Genieproducts had sold in the UK, its customer list comprised of just sixor seven names, including HSS,LGH, Speedy and Concord liftingand AC Lighting. Letters were sentout informing them of the changeand giving the number of an 'officephone' in Fuller's house. He recallsbeing amazed when the phone rangwithin the hour, it was LGHwanting to order two Air Hoists,taken aback he said “do you want aquote?” to be told “No we have the

The New Year saw the departureafter 25 years of John Fullerfrom Genie. During this time hewas the face of the company inthe UK to the extent that he wasknown as Genie John. Few willrecall Genie without Fuller andgiven his unusual achievementof retaining the same role overa quarter of a century - as Genie

revenues grew from $12 million to over $2.3 billion -we thought it would prove interesting to look backat his career.

Fuller's first week,training with Novonin Holland

GD Peters plant in Slough

price and terms.” What a great start.

Fuller's first dealers includedGraham Campbell, Rod Fox, RapidPlatforms and William Laird. He hadup to £2,000 a month to spend onadvertising, and ran a lead generation campaign targeting theindustrial and institutional market,passing the leads on to his growingdealer network.

With business getting off to a goodstart he hired Yvonne Johnson-Cooper, from Acklift, as office manager, initially working out of hishouse. They soon moved to a smalloffice in the town and began building a team with Fred Johnson-Cooper, Yvonne's brother in law,handling parts and Rob Johnsonservice - both came from Acklift.The group moved through four smalloffices in Southall before transferring to proper premises in Newark. Until then products had been stored in the bondedwarehouse of GR Warehousing inFelixstowe and dispatched directlyto customers.

Genie Johnmoves on

John Fuller

The lone John Fuller on Genie'sfirst show in the UK - PMEC

John Fuller with one of the manyUK dealer trips to the US


face to face c&a

A few years in, Fuller recalls beingintroduced to Jim Daintith, then withHewden, where he was struggling toget on with boss John Hutchinson.The two met and Daintith agreed topurchase the 'Genie dealer starterpack' - a PLC24, Superlift and AirHoist at total cost of around £4,000.Daintith and APS went on to be hisstar dealer.

A few years in Fuller recalls beingintroduced to Jim Daintith, then withHewden, where he was struggling toget on with boss John Hutchinson.The two met and Daintith agreed topurchase the 'Genie dealer starterpack' - a PLC24, Superlift and AirHoist at total cost of around £4,000.Daintith and APS went on to be hisstar dealer.

Boom timeWithin two years Genie launchedits first self propelled boom lift, theZ30/20HD. With the new productrange in hand Fuller set out to showit to the UK access rental industry.His first visit was to EPL, followedby John Ambrose at Universal, MikeEvans and the Morts at PTP and JohnHutchinson at Seymour Plant.However the first order - for four units-came from CSG in London, rapidlyfollowed by six units for Glover CraneHire in Northern Ireland.

Genie's best known product, theZ45/22, arrived a year or so later.Fuller recalls one of the first majororders for it: “We were exhibiting atHaydock and had a cabin and someplastic chairs - Malcolm did not believein extravagance - Ray Ledger of BET,came and sat down with us and askedwhat we'd do for several of them? Inthose days it was list price - list less25 percent for dealers, so I gave himthe standard discount and he said “OKwe'll take 16”. an incredible deal at thetime!” The boom lifts also led to anend-user distribution deal in the mid

1980's with Instant Zip-Up (IZU) inTelford which it sold alongside UpRightscissor lifts. He notes that Frank Huishof IZU placed the first Genies withNationwide Access which went on tobecome one of Genie's best customers.

Surprise award

The Genie that Fuller joined was verysales orientated, each year the companywould host a sales meeting at itsRedmond headquarters. In his secondyear Fuller was the surprised winner ofthe Salesman of the Year award, a majorhonour at the time. He recalls BobWilkerson's introduction to the winner,“He was going on about this great guy,totally dedicated, and highly successful,selling over a million in his first yearetc..etc… I remember thinking - soundslike a hell of a guy. And then out camemy name! I thought he had made amistake or I had missed something.”

The reaction is typical of Fuller who ismodest of his achievements and quiteself depreciating. “I was so lucky tohave this job, I got to travel to fantasticplaces, eat in spectacular restaurantsand meet some fantastic people, manyof whom became great friends, all Ihad to do was talk to them aboutour products.”

He notes though that it was not allplain sailing, recalling problems withthe first Z45's, fitted with Onanengines, designed for marineapplications. The Onan dealer, a smallcompany in Southampton was not able to support machines dottedall over the UK. “Genie's three owners

As the company built-up its supportstaff and facilities to handle the growingdemands from both the UK and therest of Europe. Newcomers took overresponsibility for these aspects ofthe business. Fuller's position/titlehas ranged up and down over theyears but he never allowed himselfto get too upset about reporting lines,as long as his boss let him get on withthe job. No matter what his title, hisstatus in the UK market never changed.

Fuller says: “I am just a salesman andlove what I do, I was not desperatelykeen to take on a bigger territory withmore travel, and not really one for lotsof reporting and administration. I havenot yet adapted to the latest technology,perhaps now that I have more time Ican change that?”

Since November he has been travellingwith his replacement, Phil Graysmark,introducing him to his customers, officially departing at year end but willbe working with Genie a few days aweek to complete the hand over andassist where necessary.

At 55 he is hardly ready for full retirement.Initially he will be kept busy with a newhome, having just sold his house inSouthwell high street to downsize nowthat his three boys have started movingout. He has purchased an old house onthe outskirts of the town which “needsa lot of work” and will project managethe renovation/building works as wellas doing a lot of the labouring. After thatwho knows? We may see more ofJohn Fuller yet.

were very customer focused andreacted quickly to such problems,in this case changing to a Kubotaengine,” says Fuller.

Other 'disasters' included scaffold towersand the acquisition of the Hyster/FabtekV series sigma lifts. Both ranges wereeventually dropped by Genie. WhileFuller sees them as disasters, theproducts were good, but were simplynot profitable for the company.

Market leadership

Genie quickly dominated the UK per-sonnel lift (AWP) market, and Fullergradually won leadership of the boommarket in the 1990's by taking morethan a fair share of the big orders fromcompanies such as Lavendon, SGB,Hewden, David Meek, Universal, ThePlatform Company, Height for Hire, GPTand Skylift. For many years, he managedto keep JLG and Haulotte at bay.

After four years or so Geniemoved to its premises in Newark

Award: Roger Brown (L) recognises the Genie Europe Team,John Fuller, Linda and Malcolm Cardy.

Star dealer Jim Daintith(L) with John Fuller

(L) John Fuller with David Priceof Lavendon and Bob Wilkerson,

presenting Lavendon with acustomer of the year award


ARA c&a

While it might not look like theARA of past years, there are someinteresting exhibits, and it will bea great show for catching up withmost manufacturers and comparingnotes. On top of this the seminars,often overlooked by internationalvisitors, are first rate and goodvalue for the extra $100.

The American Rental Association annual convention and its Rental Show, is backin Atlanta, possibly the least favourite venue for international visitors. The weatheris not likely to be great and the city does not have the obvious pulling power ofLas Vegas, Orlando or Anaheim. However those who know the city swear by it andtravel connections are not bad. This year will be quiet in comparison to previousyears and for the first time since most can remember JLG will not be in attendance.

Springtime in Atlanta

Where?Georgia World Congress Atlanta

When?Tuesday 3rd March

08:00 Keynote speech - Captain ScottO'Grady

10:00 - 17:00 Exhibition opens

17:00 - 19:00 International Reception

Wednesday 4th March

08:00 - 12:30 Tour of local rental company forInternational visitors

09:00 - 17:00 Exhibition

Thursday 5th March

09:00 - 14:00 Exhibition

Registration One day - Exhibition only

ARA Members or International visitors $50/Day

Non members from USA and Canada $75/day

Full registration

ARA Members or International visitors $150/Day

Non members from USA and Canada $250/day

HotelsWithin a short walk

• The Embassy Suites CentennialOlympic Park,

• Glenn Hotel,

• Hilton Garden Inn AtlantaDowntown

• Omni Hotel at CNN Center.

All hotels have rooms available andhave lowered their rates.

For other hotels see ARA websitefor full list.

Free shuttle buses will run betweenhall B and hall C at congress centreto all hotels on the ARA lists.

Cranes andaccess listing

AichiArrow Material handling telehandler attachments

AusaBaxter crane

Bil-JaxBobcat

Carelift - See SkyjackCase

Custom Equipment Denka - Reachmaster

Equipment Parts WholesalesFalck Schmidt

GehlGenie

HaulotteJCB

ManitouMarv Haugen Attachments

MECMinn Parr

MLE Niftylift

Oil&SteelOmme - Tracked Lifts

Pathway Polymers - Poly fillPLE

Pro Tech works Reachmaster

SkyjackSmiley Lifting Solutions

SnorkelStar Industries

SumnerSunshine Enterprises

TeupenTiresocks

Unic - See SmileyUniversal CanvasUpRight - Snorkel

Vault products ScaffoldWorldlift - Reachmaster

The originalSpeed Level inSnorkel guise

Nifty will have aspread from its range


ARAc&aSeminarsThe ARA seminars are first rate and there are 18 of them covering all manner ofsubjects from Seven Sins of Safety to How to sell value - separating yourselffrom your competitors. Note that most of them are on Monday March 2nd.

March 2 seminars9 AM - 11 AM Real or Perceived: The Valuations of a Family Business9 AM - 11 AM Thrive, Don't Just Survive: Leading an Organization

in a Down Economy 9 AM - 11 AM How to Sell Value: Separating Yourself From Your

Competitors9 AM - 11 AM Loyal for Life: Building an Emotional Connection9 AM - 11 AM Nudgin': Making Word of Mouth Marketing Sizzle in

Your Rental Store9 AM - 11 AM CERP Exams1:45 PM - 3:15 PM Break-Even Analysis: Measuring and Managing

Key Profit Drivers1:45 PM - 3:15 PM The Top Five Strategies for Web Site Success1:45 PM - 3:15 PM The Science of Happiness: The Fast Track to

Outrageous Business Success1:45 PM - 3:15 PM It's Not Rocket Science: Developing an Effective

Claims Management Program 1:45 PM - 3:15 PM Rental Town Hall: Construction and Tool Rental3:30 PM - 5 PM Break Free: Asset Protection, Tax Reduction

and Estate Planning3:30 PM - 5 PM Hire Tough, Manage Easy3:30 PM - 5 PM Conflict Management: Why Can't Everyone Get Along3:30 PM - 5 PM The Seven Sins of Safety: Cure Bad Behaviors

and Prevent Accidents3:30 PM - 5 PM Rental Town Hall: Party and Event Rental

March 5th seminars 8 AM - 9 AM Breakfast and Closing Speaker:

Enjoying Life to the Fullest by Capturing the Naturally Occurring Humor of Reality

8 AM - 9 AM Employee Seminar*Can You Hear Me? Five Specific Tips to Listen and Be Listened To

Exhibits to look out forSkyjack The Canadian manufacturer is pressing ahead with some first classnew products, including its new 46ftarticulated boom the SJ46AJ whichwill be on display for the first time inNorth America, alongside it will be afull selection from its classic scissorlift range and its growing line of telescopic booms. Sadly it is unlikelyto have its 12 and 16ft mast-type

concept lifts on show. It will thoughbe showing models from its two telehandler ranges.

MECThis will probably be the main standto visit in terms of new products,MEC will not only have its new Ultrascissor lifts with platform heights ofup to 54ft, but also its version of theSpeed Level, MEC's take on the classic UpRight self leveller.

Haulotte -Bil-JaxHaulotte and Bil-Jax will be exhibitingas one for the first time at the ARAand will almost certainly have thelargest access stand at the show.The company will have a wide rangeof its products on display includingtrailer lifts, boom and scissor lifts,scaffold, mast booms, telehandlersand a new transport trailer for smallercompany products.

Snorkel/UpRightSnorkel/UpRight will have a selectionof its scissor and boom lifts on display including its latest trailer andboom machines. One assumes thatthe company will have its originalSpeed Level on show if only to highlight the fact that it retains ownership of this product type.

Niftylift The UK-based company has a strongfollowing with ARA members and

The new Skyjack SJ46AJ

Haulotte/Bil-Jax will show a new trailer alongside its access equipment.

has been very successful in NorthAmerica with its trailer lifts and selfpropelled booms. The stronger dollarwill be making the company's USbusiness more profitable.

AichiDistributed by Toyota, the companywill have its new range of globalbooms and scissors on display.

GenieOne of the few shows that Genie willbe attending this year, so if you wantto see them in a trade show settingyou will need to visit Atlanta. Thecompany will have a small selectionfrom its wide range.

Worldlift IndustriesVisit the Reachmaster stand,Worldlift's US company store withDenka and Falck Schmidt trailer, spider and atrium lifts.

The new MECSpeed Level


misuse/abusec&a

Abuse orforeseeable misuse

The Machinery Directive 98/37/ECstates that manufacturers mustconsider not only the normal use ofthe machines they build but alsoany misuses which can reasonablybe anticipated. This relates both tothe safe design of the product andalso when writing the operatinginstructions. This immediately raisesthe question with manufacturers asto what 'can reasonably be expected?'Or, put another way, where is thedelineation between intended use,foreseeable misuse and abuse ofthe product?

Intended useIntended use is the use of the product for the purpose for which it was designed and in the way normally prescribed in the instructions. It is therefore important that this is stated in theinstructions and also that any usesother than those stated are notpermitted unless approved by themanufacturer.

Reasonably foreseeable misuse isdefined in the new Directive2006/42/EC as 'use of machinery in a way not intended in the instructions but which may resultfrom readily predictable human

behaviour'. The key phrase here ishuman behaviour and the questionthat a manufacturer must asktherefore is 'is an operator likelyto do this …?'

We all know from experience thatif there are two ways in which toundertake a particular task, theeasiest or quickest method willusually be chosen. If either of thesemethods results in making themachine less safe, then measuresshould be introduced - designedin - to automatically prevent sucha reduction in safety.

One example is a load sensingsystem, which prevents overloadingand thus requires the operator tocarry out several smaller, safe liftsrather than a single, potentiallydangerous, lift. Such safety issueshave been written into and becomea requirement of harmonisedstandards such as EN280:2001.However, standards are not drawnup with every possible operatingscenario in mind, which is wherethe manufacturer must undertake arisk assessment to determine anyother limiting factors of themachines it designs and produces.

On the other hand, the manufacturercannot be expected to foreseeevery possible situation or the eventhe capabilities of every operatorthat uses the machine. If themanufacturer is able to demonstratevia, say, stability or structuralcalculations, that its product willremain safe even if not used exactlyas intended, then that may be moreacceptable than relying on anoperator's judgement. Another wayto look at it is to play the role of asafety inspector and ask the

question 'did you not expect thatsomeone would do that sooner orlater?' If the answer is “yes” thensteps should be taken to ensurethat the machine is still inherentlysafe. In many circumstances themisuse is not preventable bydesign, for example operatorsstanding on the guardrails of aplatform or the top step of a stepladder - or using a pallet on aforklift as a form of access. In suchcases there is not much that canbe done apart from warnings in theoperating instructions and a decalwhere applicable.

So what is Abuse?While the difference betweenforeseeable misuse and abuse canbe the subject of debate, there aresome cases that fall clearly into the'Abuse' category. For example,foreseeable misuse does not precludeirrational behaviour, this is whereactions taken by an operator fallsclearly into the area of abuse.

The new European Directive 2006/42/EC obligessuppliers of equipment to consider and makeallowances for ‘reasonably foreseeable misuse’ in their products and manuals. In the followingarticle Peter Reed, technical officer of the notifiedbody PAC, sets out the differences between normal use, predictable misuse and abuse.

Predictablemisuse and

abusePeter Reed

Predictable misuse? - Yes

Driving off without stowing the crane - predictable misuse?

Predictable? Yes

Hard to predict this application!

About the author Peter Reed has a strong backgroundin mechanical, electrical andstructural engineering and spent14 years with Grove as a designengineer and project managerwith the Manlift Division. Hisresponsibilities included thepreparation of technical files forEC certification, providing anideal stepping stone to joining anotified body that specialises inlifting equipment - PAC.

This can include deliberate actionstaken by the operator to over-ridesafety devices, thus deliberatelymaking the machine less safe or theelaborate modification of the productto carry out a task for which it wasclearly not designed.

On the other hand a manufacturercannot be expected to indicateeverything that is not permitted inthe operator's manual as Abuse,and the same applies to prohibitionsstated on decals on the machine. Ifpotential misuse is predictable thenit must be considered. Furtherbackground on foreseeable misusewill be included in the guidance tothe new Machinery Directive, whichis currently being drafted and willultimately be available on-line.


PASMA focusc&aLow Level, High Profile

19 Woodside Crescent, Glasgow G3 7ULTel: 0845 230 4041 Fax: 0845 230 4042 Email: [email protected]

The Healthand SafetyOffencesAct 2008

Given the added incentive of theWork at Height Regulations, industry sources estimate thatsome 50,000 low level productshave now found their way into theUK market since 2004, where theyare particularly popular with thefinishing trades in the constructionsector. They provide a compact,lightweight, inexpensive and, inmost cases, a 'protected' workingplatform by having a guardrail system fitted as standard.

However, like any other item of workat height equipment, they have

C o n t a c t d e t a i l s

their limitations and employers havea statutory obligation to ensure thatanyone that uses them is competent and aware of the factorsthat can affect their safe use. Thiscan only be achieved through training which is why PASMA hasadded a low level access module toits industry standard training scheme.

As the lead industry body in thisfield, PASMA is also developing aproduct standard for low levelaccess. Managing director, PeterBennett said: “Unfortunately, wherever there is high demand for

a product, there is inevitably anopportunity for cheap, inferior andoften imported versions which, in theabsence of a minimum standard, canbe distributed with impunity. Thesehave the potential to exacerbate the already concerning accident statistics for low level working.”

PASMA's technical committee is nowat an advanced stage of drafting amuch needed product standard forthis type of equipment and expectsto publish a first draft for public

Accessin action

With the introduction of The Healthand Safety Offences Act 2008 on 16 January 2009, the importance ofproper training has never beengreater. The new Act raises the maximum fine that can be imposedby the magistrates' courts forbreaches of health and safety legislation from £5,000 to £20,000and makes imprisonment an option for more serious offences.

The new legislation has promptedwarnings to employers who may betempted to cut corners in the creditcrunch that it may end up costingthem their business and even theirfreedom.

Not prepared to lie low over low level access, PASMAis championing the need for training and product standards for low level access products such as podium or pulpit steps and folding room scaffolds.

PASMA, as a leading member of the Access Industry Forum, will again be participating in Access Live, the Access Village and the Work at Height Seminar Theatre at the 2009 Safety & Health Expo, 12 - 14 May at the NEC, Birmingham.

Access Live will see PASMA using professional actors to perform a tower-based scenario designed to reinforce the Health and Safety Executive's ongoing 'Shattered Lives' campaign. It will take as its theme'Act now before it's too late' as a call to action to combat the risk of injury or death as the result of a fall from height.

New in 2008, and back by popular demand, is the Work at Height Seminar Theatre. The aim is to provide practicalknowledge and information that can be readily applied in the workplace and to address the most important questionsfacing the industry. PASMA members wishing to submit a paper should contact the secretariat.

Finally, Forum members, including PASMA, will again provide clear and practical guidance from their respective standsin the Access Village. For more information about the Forum and Expo, please visit www.accessindustryforum.org.uk

Training TeamThe training committee for2008/09 comprises the following representatives:

• Andy Weaver, SGB Group(chairman)

• Jason Woods, Euro Towers

• Amanda Wild, Generation UK

• Dave Dagger, AccessConsultancy & Training

• John Fidoe, HSS Hire Service Group

• Stuart Duncan, Turner Access

• Phil Higgs, Youngman Group

• Rob Norris, Aliscaff

• Geoff Carr, Instant Training

• Michael Aston, ASTRATraining (immediate past chairman)

comment within the next few months.

Anyone in doubt about the necessityfor such a standard need only glanceat the latest statistics from the HSE.These show that falls from a height ofup to and including two metres in2006/07 resulted in 15 fatalities,2,947 major injuries and 3,722 injurieswhere the person concerned neededthree or more days off work. Thesecompare with provisional figures of 15, and 2,779 and 3,597 respectivelyfor 2007/08.

New FacesAs part of its long term development plans,PASMA has appointed four new members of staff. Monica Mircescu and ChristineShepherd have joined the adminstration team reporting to Karen O'Neill, while JillCouttie takes up the newly created post ofmembership communications officer. Thefourth new member of staff is accounts controller, Suzanne McFarlane. They can be reached on 0845 230 4041.

Suzanne McFarlane

Erecting aninsulated tower

Monica Mircescu Christine Shepherd

Jill Couttie

PASMA at Safety & Health Expo, 12 -14 May 2009

Pic: Courtesy of Youngman Group


Do you need a top seat for your application?

N a t i o n w i d e

Wharfedale Road, Euro Way Ind. Est. Bradford. BD4 6SLTel: 0870 017 0606

Web: www.atlascranes.co.uk

N a t i o n w i d e

Te l :01691 626427 Fax : 01691 626472

Hiab Ltd

e-mail: [email protected] • Web: www.hiab.co.uk

Cargotec Industrial Park, Ellesmere, Shropshire, SY12 9JW

The training accreditation service of Lorry Loader Manufacturers and Importers

I r e l a n d

T H WHITEContact: David Ottaway 01380 722381

Email: [email protected] Road Devizes

Wilts SN10 3EA

N a t i o n w i d e

ALLMI Unit 7b, Prince Maurice House, Cavalier Court, Bumpers Farm, Chippenham, Wiltshire. SN14 6LHTEL:01249 659150 email: [email protected] web: www.allmi.com

Are your Lorry Loader Operators properly trained? Call a certified ALLMI training provider and Insist on the ALLMI card.

ALLMI accredited Lorry LoaderOperator Training Providers

Church Road, Tullamore, Co. Offaly, IrelandTel: 086 2500 825 Mobile: 086 1042 787


ALLMI focusc&a

It has recently come to ALLMI's attention that clarification is requiredwith regard to the A2 amendment of BS EN12999. The A2 amendmentwas approved by CEN (the European Committee for Standardisation) on the 16th March 2006 and was entered into the EU Official Journal on the 1st October 2006. The provisions of the amendment are notmandatory for loader cranes manufactured during the 12 months following the date of introduction, but compliance is required for anyloader crane manufactured from the 1st October 2007, which has beenissued with an EC Declaration of Incorporation and / or an EC Declarationof Conformity stating that the loader crane complies with EN12999.

With regard to the changes introduced as a result of the A2amendment, of particular relevanceis section 5.4.3.2, which relatesto manually operated stabiliserextensions:

“It shall be clearly visible to the operator when the manual lockingdevices are in the locked andunlocked position. In addition, awarning light, visible from the transport driving position, shall indicate when the stabilisers are not locked in the transport position.”

Put clearly, this means that allloader cranes manufactured from 1stOctober 2007, which are supplied withthe above mentioned declarations,must be fitted with a visible warninglight to indicate when the outriggerbeams are not properly stowed. Inmost cases, the best way to do thismay be via the existing boom heightwarning circuit.

A number of questions have beenraised as a result of the requirementsintroduced by this Amendment.They are listed below with clear and definitive answers:

Q. Some of the systems availableread off the cam lock and notthe leg. Therefore, it is possibleto have the leg locked in the out position, yet the warningsystems will be off in the cab.Would it not be more practicalfor the warnings to read off theleg or foot, then the warningwould clearly indicate if the legis stowed safely or not?

A. First of all, there is no requirement for the device toconfirm that the stabiliser jackleg has been raised (see alsobelow). However, eachManufacturer has its own system. In the event of this type of system (camlock sensor)

BS EN 12999 A2 Amendment

ALLMI recently took part in aninaugural meeting of an IndustryWorking Group for EC Whole VehicleType Approval. The purpose of theWorking Group is to establishindustry solutions for any of theoutstanding issues relating to theforthcoming implementation of TypeApproval from the 29th April 2009.

The Working Group will be discussingthose elements of Type Approval thatthe UK Department for Transport (DfT)

being fitted, it is important thatthe operator has received specific instruction in terms ofthe leg stowage procedure sohe is aware of the need toensure he has stowed andlocked the stabilisers in thetransport position prior to travel.This is also a requirement underthe Road Traffic Act.

Q. Is it acceptable to put the sensors on secondary latches?

Q. Is there any exemption for smaller cranes, e.g. those underfour Tonne/m?

A. No, the standard makes noexceptions for smaller cranes. Ifa crane has been issued with anEC Declaration of Incorporationand /or an EC Declaration ofConformity stating that it complies with EN12999, then it must conform to all of therequirements in place at the date of certification.

and its agencies flag as industry matters. These include Multi-stageand Transmission of Data, togetherwith other matters such as Type,Variant and Version Definition, all of which require there to be a common approach from all parties.

The principal members of theWorking Group are the VBRA,SMMT, VCA, VOSA, CHEM, REMSA,NTTA and ALLMI. The activities ofthis group will be reported to the

DfT, which is interested in its outcomes and any policy changesthat it could facilitate to assist in theimplementation of Type Approval.

T H White technical manager, LesDrage, represented ALLMI at theinaugural meeting held in January.He said: “This Working Group wasformed as a result of two years ofstrategy and policy meetingsbetween DfT, VOSA, VCA andVBRA. The meetings identified the

need for certain procedural andtechnical issues to be analysed ingreater detail, and the VBRA volunteered to take this on, whichled to the formation of the WorkingGroup. The group aims to focus onthe process implications and thecommunication of informationbetween the intermediate stages of a multi stage build, and ALLMIhas a continuing and vital part toplay at this.”

ALLMI joins European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval Working Group

A. Yes.

Q. Are there new regulations thatpermit only mechanical switchesto be used for safety systemsand not proximity switches?

A. No, either type of switch isacceptable, providing it's effective.

Q. What about cranes manufacturedprior to the 1st October 2007.Is it a requirement to retrofitthese systems?

A. No, this is optional.

Q. Is a provision required for ensuringthat the stabiliser leg cylindersare also fully retracted? In otherwords, should the legs be lockedup and in, or just in?

A. The legs only need to be lockedin. The standard requires lockingmeans to prevent uncontrolledmovements of the crane and stabilisers. No measure isrequired to ensure the jack cylinders are retracted.

The amendment was drivenby a number of accidents,several of which involvedthe death of pedestrians

The amendment was drivenby a number of accidents,several of which involvedthe death of pedestrians

Stabiliser beams must be properly locked and a warning light must be locatedin the cab

Don’t risk it call a certified local company today

Tel: 08707 871511Email: [email protected]

www.afi-uplift.co.uk

Tel: 01793 766744Email: [email protected]

Dublin:+353 01 459 46 46 • Cork:+353 021 488 66 46Limerick:+353 061 30 46 46 • Galway:+353 091 50 46 46

Email: [email protected] • www.skylift.ie

All training centres above offer IPAF approved and audited courses for Operators of Mobileaerial work platforms, European directives require that all staff are fully and adequatelytrained in the safe use of the equipment they operate.

See www.ipaf.org for full listing

Are your staff properly trained ?Don’t risk it call a certified local company today

Tel:+44 (0) 1480 891251 • Fax:+44 (0) 1480 891162Email: [email protected]

www.accessplatforms.co.uk

Access Platform Sales

Contact: Access TrainingTel: 01925 860826

Email: [email protected]

Tel: 0845 27 ACTIVE(228483) • Fax: 01698 281 735Email: [email protected]

www.activerentals.co.uk

Tel: 0115 9008855 • Fax: 0115 9008880Email: [email protected]

instant training

Tel: 0845 068 4594 • Fax: 0845 815758Email: [email protected]

www.instant-training.com

HullTel: 01482 227333 • Fax: 01482 587710

Email: [email protected]


The owners of a Bradford hotel have been fined £15,000 after telling two workers to climb on to the roof more than four storeys up to take down a flagpole without safety equipment. Magistrates ordered Tomahawk Hotels,which owns the Great Victoria Hotel in Bridge Street, Bradford, to pay £12,000for breaching health and safety rules and £3,000 for failing to assess the riskinvolved. The company was also ordered to pay £7,000 of costs to Bradford City Council which brought the prosecution.

The man responsible for thework, maintenance manager JohnPartridge, 38, was fined £1,500for failing to take reasonable careabout the safety of the two menon the roof and not obtaining“suitable and sufficient” safetyequipment.

The two men were spotted on theroof without any safety equipment inJune 2006. Council health & safetystaff saw them from their offices andtook photographs of them in actionpushing and pulling the flagpole totry and free it from its socket.

The prosecutor said: “The photographshows the significant height atwhich the men are working and neither are wearing a safety harness.A step ladder leaning on the ledgeof the roof hatch, was also a dangerous access method in thattwo of its legs were entirely

unsupported and the legs themselves are held together with a rope.” She also went on to say that therewere discrepancies over whatPartridge had been told by hisemployers. He denied being told tobuy whatever safety equipment heneeded and to do the job himself.He also said he had received nohealth and safety training, something which the company'srecords appeared to dispute -though the Council brought theseinto question.The prosecution said that: Partridgeclaimed he had done a verbal riskassessment, but that it was “insufficient” and the “risk wasobvious” - there was “potential forserious harm to the workers.”John Coen, representing the hoteland Partridge, told Bradford

The National Access and ScaffoldingConfederation (NASC) has launchedits guidance note TG20:08 - A Guideto good Practice for Scaffolding withTubes and Fittings.

Designed as an important, practical and user friendly guide for scaffoldingcontractors and designers, the guidance note will also be of use toconstruction companies working withscaffolding contractors.

TG20:08 details how tube and fittingscaffolding can be erected to complywith the European standard BS EN

12811-1, which supersedes BS5973. Some main contractors wantthe guidance to be implementedimmediately although the HSE hasagreed not to fully enforce it for thefirst two years.

trainingc&aHotel owners hit for £22,000

New scaffold guidance

Who trained him then?

magistrates that following the verbalrisk assessment they decided thatthe work would be done on a dryday and in daylight. The roof wasflat and about eight by three metresin size and the pole was in the middle. “The risk did not require themen to go towards the edge of theroof and there were only up thereten to 15 minutes.”

The men had been told to stayaway from the edge and to simplyunscrew the bracket, not pull thepole back and forth.”

After the case David Clapham, principal environmental health

manager at the Council, said: “Weare pleased with the level of thesefines which illustrate how seriousthese offences were. We hope this sentence sends out a strong message to other businesses thatthe health and safety of theiremployees must be paramount.”

Simon Grybas, the hotel's currentgeneral manager said: “We take thewelfare of our employees very seriously and we have learned fromthis experience. We now have fulltraining systems in place and weare fully compatible with all Healthand Safety regulations.”

Two menon the

roof cost£22,00.

Lack of training costs $92,000Canada Steel Service Centre has pleaded guilty and been fined$92,500 after serious injuries were suffered by a young worker in its warehouse in London, Ontario. On April 23, 2007, a youngemployee at the warehouse who had been on the job just underthree months was moving two bundles of steel round bars weighing around 4,000kg with an overhead crane operated by a remote control from the ground.

The rigging of the lifting slings fitted by the employee was improperand unsafe and the steel consequently slipped out of the rigging andstruck the man causing serious foot, lung, leg, arm and back injuries.One of his feet was later amputated.

The company was fined for failing to provide information, instructionand supervision to a worker about how to safely operate an overheadcrane to lift bundles of round bars, and failing to provide information,instruction and supervision about safe rigging procedures.

This man was spotted working on the power lines outside theHarbortown Hotel in Iloilo City, on Panay in central Philippines.

You can help sponsor this page with a training advert promotingthe importance of training along with your training centre email us on [email protected]

Telephone: UK Office +44 (0) 8707 740436

email the Vertikal Team at

[email protected]

www.vertikaldays.net

If you buy, use or have a

professional interest in Access

equipment, working at height,

Mobile cranes, Tower cranes and

Loader cranes, not to mention

Telehandlers then register now

for the UK and Ireland’s event

for lifting professionals –

Vertikal Days.

See the latest equipment and

services, meet the experts and

enjoy a day of networking,

deal-making and socialising.

Be part of the UK's only specialist liftingequipment event. Register on-line today foryour FREE visitor ticket

ACCESS EQUIPMENT - CRANES - TELEHANDLERS

Haydock Park June 24th & 25th 2009


PAL Cardstill going strongdespite recession blues

IPAF focusc&a

IPAF, Bridge End Business Park,

Milnthorpe, LA7 7RH, UK

Tel: 015395 62444

Fax: 015395 64686

www.ipaf.org [email protected]

Offices in France, Germany, Italy,

the Netherlands, Spain,

Switzerland and the USA.

IPAF Summit 2009 on 2 April in Dublin

IPAF Summit reaches new heightswith new venue and awardsPut the 2nd April 2009 in your diary. It's the IPAF Summit and the firstInternational Awards for Powered Access (IAPA). The Summit and awardsdinner will be held at the Crowne Plaza Northwood in Dublin, Ireland.

For those arriving the day before,there is a networking event on theevening of the first of April at theGuinness Brewery including buffetsupper. The IAPA celebrate andreward best practice. Categoriesnclude the IPAF Safety Championof the Year, the Access Rental Company of the Year, and the NewIPAF Training Centre of the Year.

Visit www.ipaf.org/iapa for moredetails on the awards criteria andentry form, sponsorship, tablesales and getting to the venue.

The MCWP User Induction confirmsthat the holder has been made familiarwith the safe operation and use ofMCWPs in accordance with legislationas detailed within BS7981:2002. Itconfirms that the holder has beenshown and has demonstrated competenceon the correct procedure to carry outa pre-use check, operation of theMCWP and the procedure for manually-lowering the MCWP in the event ofan emergency on the MCWP at thesite named.

The MCWP User Induction is model,location and site-specific and mayonly be issued by an IPAF certifiedMCWP demonstrator. IPAF members

Site managers nowhave a documentedmeans of verifyingthat users of mastclimbing workplatforms (MCWPs)on their site have beenproperly inducted.

IPAF issued a record 81,378 PAL Cards (PoweredAccess Licences) in 2008, an increase of 89percent over the 43,007 PAL Cards processed in2004, which are due for renewal in 2009 as thePAL Card is valid for five years.

“Training will grow steadily in 2009, as newmarkets and industrial sectors embrace the

benefits of internationally recognisedoperator training,” said Tim Whiteman,

IPAF managing director. “The IPAFtraining programme has wonacceptance in many countries andwe are seeing a strong push towardsa standardised level of platformoperator training available globally.”

and IPAF certified MCWP demonstratorsmay order this document (£5 perbooklet of 100 sheets) by [email protected]

Users of MCWPs do not requiretraining and the issuing of a PAL Card.They simply require induction tocover the machine's operating controls(up/down), pre-use checks andemergency procedures.

MCWP training covers the levelsMobile Operator, Demonstrator,Installer and Advanced Installer, eachleading to the award of a PAL Card.Visit the Training section ofwww.ipaf.org to find an MCWPtraining centre.

User induction formastclimbers

IPAF members have the opportunity to obtain reports that containgroundbreaking research on the rental sector to help them plan businessstrategies. All three reports -- the IPAF European Powered Access RentalReport 2008, the IPAF US Powered Access Rental Report 2008, and theERA European Equipment Rental Industry 2008 Report -- can be purchasedat a special price of €440 (£395). Details at www.ipaf.org

IPAF and ERA Rental Reports

Job Access targets young talentIPAF is inviting young people to learn about the access industry at the Intermatconstruction equipment show in Paris. Job Access will be the focus of the IPAFstand E5 J 020 in the outdoor area. Visitors will see platforms in action, includingdemonstrations to illustrate the dangers of not wearing a full body harness whenoperating a boom-type mobile elevating work platform, using a real-weight dummyon a specially modified Skyjack boom. IPAF is also developing an engineering apprenticeship designed to lead to a “technician”level qualification. Pascal Deher of IPAF-France, who is leading the project, said: “JobAccess will give young people a wonderful chance to learn about the powered accessbusiness and understand the industry. It is not every day that 18-year-olds from technicalhigh schools can gain insight into the workings of this complex and multifaceted business.”Schools interested in sending young people should register online atwww.ipaf.org/jobaccess. They will then be given login details to complete aquestionnaire. Suitable groups will be sent to the Intermat show to attend a lectureat the IPAF stand and gain practical experience of operating a platform.

The 50-minute lecture will give an introduction tothe powered access industry -history, developmentof equipment, use of equipment, main employers inthe industry (manufacturers, rental companies),main areas of employment (hydraulics, electronics,engineering, hire desk, etc.), safe operation andtraining. A small display on the history of the poweredaccess industry will also be on show.At the end of the lecture, the attendees will take ashort test. A laptop will be awarded each day as aprize to the most successful participant. Attendeeswill also have the opportunity to test the equipment withan instructor and to watch the demonstration.

To facilitate heavy lifting the model is supplied with a counterweight tray that hangs from the back mast,and this can be loaded up with alarge number of individualcounterweight slabs. The tray canalso be set at different radii from thecrane using an extending mechanism.

The overall quality of this model ishigh and Conrad has continued itsreputation of engineering the modelsit produces well. German labour costsmean that the crane is not as detailedas some of the high quality modelscoming out of China these days, butit looks very good nonetheless. It isalso not a cheap model, costing around€650 from most German model dealers.

Overall though, this is a highlyrecommended model. It is flexible in how it can be displayed, eithererected in one of many different configurations, or even as a series of loads on suitable heavy haulagemodels. As a show of 'big iron' itwill impress in a private collection or in a corporate office.

To read the full review of this modelvisit www.cranesetc.co.uk


books & models c&a

LG1750Big Iron The massive carrier

Lifting a vesselat height

The largest capacity lattice boommobile crane currently made byLiebherr is the LG1750 which hasa lifting capacity of 750 tonnesand can be equipped with amaximum boom and jib combinationup to 200 metres. It is an unusualmachine in that the crane carriertravels without the crane's boomor superstructure, which aretransported separately andattached at the jobsite, followingwhich the rest of the crane iserected. In fact the crane itself isderived from the LR1750 crawlercrane, and shares many of itscomponents. A number of theselarge mobile cranes have alreadybeen sold by Liebherr.Conrad of Germany had previouslyproduced a model of the crawlercrane version of the 1750 in 1:50scale for Liebherr, and now it haslaunched the LG1750 truck mountedversion. The first indication that thisis a big model comes with the box,which is large and heavy. Inside, allof the many parts are neatly packed,and a set of instructions guides theassembly process,

Cranes Etc Model Rating

Packaging (max 10) 8

Detail (max 30) 24

Features (max 20) 17

Quality (max 25) 22

Price (max 15) 10

Overall (max 100) 81%

Big ironAttaching the crane

A convoy ready to roll

The National Association and Scaffolding Confederation has publishedits annual year book for 2009. The book, more a thick magazine, isstacked full of information of façade scaffolding and the activitiesof the association in 2008.

There is no way you can call this a good read, and some of the content,such as the committee reports, is only of interest to the keenest of members.However, if you are an occasional or regular user of façade type scaffold youwill find this yearbook to be informative and interesting. It includes a largenumber of interesting and unusual applications to a full list of the associations200 members and an update on what is happening to scaffold regulation andthe updates to various Technical Guidance notes.Copies can be obtained from the NASC www.nasc.org.uk +44(0)20 78227400

which can take around eighthours to fully rig the model in itsmaximum configuration.

The crane carrier is a big slug ofmetal with eight independentsteering axles, and huge telescopicoutrigger beams which are used tospread the load, and be in no doubtthat the stresses in models of thissize can be significant so the heavyconstruction is reassuring.

The crane consists of the superstructureframe which clips securely onto thecarrier and includes a swing awaycab which also tilts during lifting,replicating the original. A largenumber of boom and jib sectionsare supplied and these allow thecrane to be configured in a numberof different ways. With a simplemain boom only or it can be riggedwith main boom and back mast, towhich the luffing jib can be added,The quality of manufacture of theseparts is very good and they fittogether easily to produce strongcombined sections. If the model iserected to its full height it towers toover two metres and is veryimpressive indeed.

An association yearbook for your bookshelf

The NASC yearbook a handy referencerather than a good read


etters

Dear Leigh

I would like to respond to the very

negative and adverse press that myself personally and my company has been

faced with over recent articles and letters received by your magazine and address

some of the unfair comments being made to stop this feeling of any premeditated

actions and adverse actions on my behalf, and to put the matter straight before

any further damage is caused.

In these very uncertain financial times I do believe that banks and various financial

institutions should not be allowed to behave in such disgraceful ways that do not

give us the smaller businesses the chance to work through extremely difficult

times, and simultaneously feather their own nests accordingly. The actions of the

factoring company involved with Allan Access Ltd to carry out premeditated

actions to appoint an administrator is such an example of an unregulated financial

body that should be checked and brought to task.

This factoring company appointed an administrator over the company ahead of the

company banker primary debenture (and against the wishes of what was a

supporting bank to the company who actually objected to the appointment) and to

make matters worse the factoring company had the chance to be fully paid out by

an alternative finance company but refused and frustrated them being paid in full,

choosing instead to earn substantially more extra fees by the actions of the

administration. Couple this with a shared interest and representatives with the

administrator team and you wonder who was really being represented, it certainly

was not the interests of the company, its shareholders or its creditors.

This of course left me personally with everything taken away and not only did the

creditors suffer but a substantial financial damage personally was also incurred.

Having then to effectively purchase back the assets of what was my own hard

built business in fact added insult to injury, and not any planned action as being

intimated of taking anything away from the creditors. Using a pre-registered

company Allan Access Hire Ltd which was in the process of being set up to move

the rental business away from the manufacturing business was nothing more than

an expedient. Selling off any assets purchased post administration which are not

earning the new business any income or indeed are costing the business should

be seen as a sensible business approach to raise much needed working capital in

the business, and not anything sinister or suspicious.

I therefore do believe that the recent press comments and how it has been

portrayed has not been balanced and the headline statistics took out of context to

who has actually benefited from this sad series of events. The financial institutions

have not lost anything only gained by the actions leaving everyone else including

myself financially hurt.

Leigh I do hope that the balanced view of the events can be published to put the

record straight

Yours sincerely

Phil Allan

Allan Access Hire Ltd

Dear Leigh,

The same type of cranes have found their way

to Australia as well. We know of at least three in

Western Australia and another two have just

arrived in South Australia. We circulated your story

to our CraneSafe Assessors and received the

following message;

Thanks for the info on the fake Tadano cranes, as we

have two of these units just arrived from China and

to be quite honest even a blind man could tell how

bad these actually are, they make a crane from India

look like a Rolls Royce. I am sending you a disc of

photo's so you can see. And when you look at this

you will not believe what you are actually seeing but

these have not been modified to scare you. As you

noted they even have a Kato MS10 computer in

them and writing on the boom, also the factory

where they have been built does not believe in

grinders as the oxy marks are still there, right to the

slag still on the metal. As I said seeing is believing

and I still do not believe that someone would

actually buy these as I think they would be very

expensive snapper wrecks. Have a look at the

photo's and come back to me.

Vertikal PollsTesting and certification of operators should be mandatory

The November/December poll on Vertikal.Net asked:

“Should the testing and certification of operators for cranes,aerial lifts and telehandlers be mandatory?”

The results were:

Total votes = 491

Yes - 92.1%

No - 7.9%

This is by far the largest majority we have everhad on any poll we have run, and is surprising,given the worldwide readership we wouldhave expected the result to have been closerto 70/30 and would not have been surprised ifit had been 60/40. Regulators take note!Ed

ReadersLThe following letter was received from Phil Allan of Allan Access, following a news articleand several readers letters regarding the administration and re-emergence of the businessin the last issue of Cranes&Access.

We ran a report on www.vertikal.net regarding a number of 'counterfeit' Tadano truck cranesthat turned up in Dubai. The following letterhighlighted that these units are turning up all over.

let tersc&a

Dear Leigh,

Like so many of your readers, I enjoy reading your magazine because in addition to the wide range of news it carries about what is happening in thepowered access and crane industry, you are prepared to publish controversialitems which other magazines tend to shy away from.

Here is an issue that has really annoyed me and I know is repeated in business,almost daily, where a company seeks a service - begs for instant action tohelp get their business out of a difficult situation, and then after all the hardwork is done they refuse or rather don't bother to pay.

We experienced such a problem in May 2008 when Messrs Gallo SpA of Via Salaria 1531, 00138 Roma, Italy. The company faxed us in a panic, desperately seeking help to resolve a problem they had with the Italian Safetyauthorities, who had misunderstood an EC certificate issued in 1997 for alarge telescopic boom lift. Gallo was advised that the boom was not coveredby the certificate and was prohibited from using or renting it until the matterwas resolved.

In light of the machine’s age and date of the certificate we advised that several hours work would be required and that there would be a charge butagreed that it would not exceed £250. We also advised that our terms arepayment before delivery of the documentation, but on assurances in writingfrom Ing Luca Schenetti, head of procurement, we agreed to undertake thework forthwith.

We were able to confirm that the machine had been properly certificated andthat the confusion had arisen due to a change in colour scheme and modelnomenclature. Copies of the original certification were dispatched along withcopies of the original brochures and a confirmation form the manufacturer thatwe specifically obtained to support the certification. The Italian authoritiesduly accepted the new certification and we had a happy customer.

However, over eight months down the line we are one very unsatisfied 'Angelof Mercy'. In spite of numerous statements, emails and requests for paymentall we have received are further assurances that payment will be forthcoming.The £250 remains unpaid.

I hope that you will find the space to publish this letter and warn your readers that if approached by this company they should ensure that theyreceive cleared funds before undertaking any work.

Yours Sincerely,

Paul Adorian.

Managing director

Letter edited for length, Mr Adorian also supplied clear proof ofhis claims, and we asked Gallo if they had anything to add. Weinclude this letter here with some trepidation, we most certainlyare not keen to become any form of middleman in payment disputes, although in this case it appears to be more crass ignorance than a dispute. We are though keen to hear your comments on such cases and whether there should be someform of EU small claims court to help smaller - or for that matterlarge companies to take action in such cases easily and inexpensively. After all if we are to have a true single marketthen it needs to be as easy to take action against a company in another country as in your own.


let ters c&a Readers ettersL

Letters to the editor: Please send letters to the editor: Cranes&Access: PO Box 6998, Brackley NN135WY, UK. We reserve the right to edit letters for length. We also point out thatletters are the personal views of our readers and not necessarily the views of theVertikal Press Ltd or its staff.

Angela Eagle MP

Exchequer Secretary, HM Treasury

1 Horse Guards Road, London SW1A 2HQ

22nd December 2008

Dear Minister

Re: Fuel Duty

We are writing to you on behalf of the 1,580 Member companies within our trade association who are concerned with the current level of fuel duty.

Our Members range from small independent companies to largemulti-national organisations that together generate over £4 billion-a-year turnover, in normal times. They hire out differenttypes of construction equipment including: bulldozers, telehandlers, excavators, mobile cranes, dumpers and back-hoeloaders; which can be frequently seen on construction sites,including the Olympics.

Each business is heavily reliant on both Derv (White Diesel) for delivering this equipment to site and Rebated Gas Oil (RedDiesel) which is used for the equipment's day-to-day activities.We are very concerned at the year-on-year increases in fuel dutysince 1997, in line with the fuel duty escalator. In that time therehas been a disproportionate increase in fuel duty between Derv,which has increased by 142% and Rebated Gas Oil which hasincreased by over 400%! (Please see attached schedule.)

These measures have seen the gradual erosion of the duty differential between these two fuels. If these disproportionalincreases continue unabated, within 20 years Rebated Gas Oilwill have a higher fuel duty than Derv. This will severely damage the Construction Plant industry.

In December 2004, the Government consulted with industryregarding possible changes to the Hydrocarbon Oils Duties Act.CPA held lengthy discussions with representatives of both HerMajesty's Treasury and Revenue and Customs. These discussions resulted in the agreement that most constructionplant vehicles could continue to operate on Rebated Gas Oil;thereby helping to maintain the viability of our Industry. We arequestioning why Government appears to be undermining thisagreement by imposing disproportionate fuel duty increases toRebated Gas Oil, particularly since September 2004.

To assist our industry, in these extremely difficult times, we areasking Government to consider imposing a moratorium on allfuel duty increases for the next two years; and thereafter anyincreases to the fuel duty for both Rebated Gas Oil and Dervshould be kept in line with inflation and the differential betweenRebated Gas Oil and Derv should be maintained.

I look forward to hearing from you on both of these issues.

Yours sincerely

COLIN WOOD

Chief Executive

The following is an open letter from Colin Woodof the CPA regarding the quiet escalation of fuelduty on the rebated red diesel used in cranes,aerial lifts and telehandlers

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Remote controlswith feedback

Both the transmitter(hand unit) and thereceiver (vehiclemounted unit) usesa duplex, 'two waycommunication'technique with visiblefeedback on atransmitter mountedLED display or light.

Lynx operates on thewidely accepted 2.4GHz band whichensures a powerful

and precise radio transmission. It is equipped withbipolar transistors which result in great flexibilityand communicates via serial standards (RS2332,RS485, modbus) with a PC or PLC.

The transmitter has 16 selectable channels andeach transmitter has its own unique identity witha total of 4 billion variations. Another feature builtinto the transmitter is a low battery level warning.

All transmitters are equipped with five LEDs, fourof which are programmable by the user.The system's receiver has two open collectoroutputs and it operates on 5-24 volt DC.The power consumption for 5-12 volt is 30 mAand 16 mA for the 24 volt version.

To contact any of these companies simply visit the ‘Industry Links’ section of www.vertikal.net, where youwill find direct links to the companies’ web sites for up to five weeks after publication.

To have your company’s new product or service displayed in the ‘Innovations’ section of C&A, please send in all information along with images to either;Innovations, Cranes & Access, PO Box 6998, Brackley, NN13 5WY, or alternatively by e-mail to: [email protected] with ‘Innovations’ typed in the subject box.

e nquir ies

Teleradio has introduced an entirely new line of radio remote controls under the Lynx nameTeleradio names all its controllers after big cats). Lynx controllers have been developed forapplications where there is a requirement for feedback from the equipment.

LED displaypressure switchesTecsis has introduced a newrange of pressure switcheswhich incorporate a built-inLED display that provides acontinuous pressure readout.The switches - the SC400,SC410 and SC420 - are ideallysuited for all applications,where the pressure has tobe monitored regularly.

Typical examples includehydraulic and vacuum systemsfor lifting and material handlingapplications, and monitoringof clamping pressures. Theyare available either with twoswitching outputs (SC400);with one switching and oneanalogue output (SC410); orwith two switching outputsand one analogue output (SC420).

The integrated LED display notonly provides a continuouspressure indication but alsoallows for easy set up togetherwith the programming buttons.All parameters, such as theswitching points, the switchingmode (NO, NC) and theanalogue output, can be setup very easily. An integrated

password protection ensuresthat only authorised personnelcan change the switching points.

The pressure switches offera wide range of flexibility formounting, since both displayand process connections canbe turned by 330 degrees.The stainless steel housingfulfils industrial protectionclass IP65 enabling it to beused in applications withharsh environments.

The Lynx receiverThe basic Lynx transmitter


innovat ionsc&a

The new Tecsis SC400pressure switch.

An innovative new telecommunicationsproduct called OfficeRoute, promisescompanies with remote sites, a quickand inexpensive way to communicatethrough high speed, voice and datacommunications. The system is availablethrough Neowave which claims thatOfficeRoute can be installed in a newremote location within a couple ofhours, avoiding the wait for the installationof fixed lines and the need to committo long contracts - common complaintsthroughout the construction andutilities industries.

The system includes fast email andinternet access at speeds up to 7.2 Mb,mobile phone connection, telephones, fax,voicemail and desktops with server

The compactunit that canbe fitted to thewall of a remotesite office

Neowave's OfficeRoute provides atelephone, fax and internet connectionfor temporary offices

Rapid voice anddata connection for

remote officesaccess and conversion of emails fromdesktop to SMS text messages.

The services are provided via a smartcompact router that connects the remoteoffice to the head office's local areanetwork (LAN). OfficeRoute's securityis assured through being a Virtual PrivateNetwork with built-in firewall.

Neowave's managing director, JustinBlaine said: “We are excited about thepotential for OfficeRoute. The 'one-box,no-wires' product solution, with completeportability throughout the site and elsewhere,clearly fulfils a need and offers compellingadvantages over traditional fixed line services.The product and technology are wellproven and use established and trusted3G protocols. What's more, our customerscan rent the equipment for as long as they needit without committing to long-term contracts.”

Middle East Cranes24 - 25th February 2009Crane Conference & exhibition:Shangri-La Hotel, Dubai, [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 208 269 7833ARA / Rental Show 2009ARA /Rental Show 2009Altanta Georgia March 3-5th Tel: +1800 334 2177Fax: +1309 764 1533E-mail: [email protected] BernSwitzerland's largest construction equipment show March 17th - 22nd 2009Bern, SchweizTel: +41 (0) 31 340 11 11Fax: +41 (0) 31 340 11 10E-Mail: [email protected] 2009Austrian equipment showMarch 25th - 28th 2009 Enns, AustriaTel: +43 / (0) 1 216 65 26-0Fax: +43 (0) 1 216 65 26-22E-Mail: [email protected]

CTTRussian equipment showJune 2-6, 2009Moscow, RussiaPhone: +49 89 949 22 116Fax: +49 89 949 22 350E-mail: [email protected]

Vertikal DaysMeeting for the UK crane and access industryHaydock Park June 24-25th 2009Tel: +44 (0) 8707 740436 Fax: +44 (0) 1295 768223E-mail: [email protected]: www.vertikaldays.net

Platformer DaysA specialist lifting event for the Benelux region September 25-26, 2009Safaripark Beekse Bergen , NetherlandsPhone: +31 (0)6 30 421 042Fax: +31 (0)84 710 0518E-mail: [email protected]

Verticaaldagen BeneluxBologna Fair, Italian Buildingproducts exhibition. October 28-31st, 2009Bologna, ItalyPhone: +39 051 282111Fax: +39 051 6374013E-mail: [email protected]

SAIE 2009Bologna Fair, Italian Buildingproducts exhibition. October 28-31st, 2009Bologna, ItalyPhone: +39 051 282111Fax: +39 051 6374013E-mail: [email protected]

Conexpo AsiaAn American show in China November 16-19th, 2009, Guangzhou, ChinaPhone: +1-414-298-4123E-mail: [email protected]

Big Five 2008Middle East construction show in DubaiNovember 23-27, 2008 Dubai, UAEPhone: +49 (0) 89 949 22 0Fax: +49 (0) 89 949 22 350E-mail: [email protected]

Bauma 2010World’s largest construction equipment showApril 19-25th, 2010 Munich, GermanyPhone: +49 (0) 89 51070

Conexpo 2011

The leading American equipment showMarch 22-26th 2011 Las Vegas, Nevada, USAPhone: +1 414-298-4133Fax: +1 414-272-2672E-mail: [email protected]

IPAF SummitAnnual Summit for International Powered Access FederationApril 2nd, 2009 Dublin, IrelandPhone: +44 (0) 1539562444Fax: +44 (0) 1539564686E-mail: [email protected] 2009International construction equipment showApril 24-29th, 2009 Paris, FranceTel: +33 1 49685248Fax: +33 1 49685475

E-mail: [email protected] 2009UK's premier constructionequipment exhibitionMay 12-14th, 2009 Rockinham Speedway, Corby, UKPhone: +(44) 020 8652 4810Fax: + (44) 020 8652 4804E-mail: [email protected] & Health ExpoHealth and safety showMay 12-14th, 2009 Birmingham, UKPhone: +44 (0) 207 921 8067Fax: +44 (0) 207 921 8058E-mail: [email protected]

Whats on?

FOR USERS & BUYERS OF LIFTING EQUIPMENT

reaches over six times as manyUK/Irish buyers of lifts and liftingequipment than any other liftingmagazine.

Promote your goods, jobs andservices on a regular basis toover 15,000 lifting proffessionalsaround the world - via theprinted and on-line editions ofthis magazine. You'll be surprisedhow inexpensive it can be.

ADVERTISING:The Vertikal Press Ltd.PO Box 6998, Brackley, NN13 5WY UK.Tel: +44 (0)8707 740436Fax: +44 (0)1295 768223E-mail: [email protected]

GERMANY:+(49) (0)761 189786615.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T cranes&access

Visit www.Vertikal.net/en/eventsfor a full listing of events with direct links to the organisers.

MarketplaceUSED EQUIPMENT • SPARE PARTS • RECRUITMENT • RECONDITIONING • HIRE • WANTED

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r e c r u i t m e n tc&a• RECRUITMENT • RECRUITMENT • RECRUITMENT • RECRUITMENT • RECRUITMENT


POSITION WANTED

T e l : 0 7 9 1 8 7 0 5 4 2 0

I am currently looking for a new post withinthe access industry.My most recent position was with a largeorganisation based in the UK that manufacturesand distributes a range of van & specialist truckmounted vehicles.

I have previous knowledge of all aspects of theindustry, obtaining CAP certification and IPAFinstructor status. I am dedicated to my workgiving good attention to detail along with astrong health & safety approach, good teamwork and good customer relations.

My knowledge would be of great value to anyorganisation wishing to offer me employmentwithin this type of role.

I have a good working knowledge of; Genie,JLG, Niftylift, Skyjack, Snorkel and UpRight,Van-mounted Skyking GSR, Simon, Bronto,Versalift,all product range including insulatedIAD machines.Please contact me on:-

UK Platforms Ltd. is one of the top Powered Access rental companies in the UK providing a full range of

machines for hire. For more information about UK Platforms go to www.ukplatforms.co.uk

Hire Controller - West MidlandsWe are looking for a Hire Controller for our busy Wednesbury Depot.

Previous experience in the Powered Access industry is essential.

The person we are looking for is well organised with excellent attention to

detail. You need to be enthusiastic and outgoing with good keyboard

skills and a good telephone manner. We offer a competitive salary.

Service Engineer - Teesside DepotYou will be an experienced Powered Access engineer fully conversant

with pre-delivery inspections, LOLER inspections, servicing and repair

methods and proceedures. Current IPAF License and CAP qualifications

are essential. We offer an attractive salary and benefits package.

Please send letters / CV to:Stevie Watt, UK Platforms Ltd. The Recovery Centre,Wakefield Road, Barnsley. South Yorkshire. S71 1NU.

or Email [email protected]

Email: [email protected] with your CV including current salary details.

Find that personLooking for Crane, Access

or Telehandler people? Looking for a job?

Then why not start right here in theCranes&Access recruitment section?

The industry's recruitment resource withinthe UK and Ireland's only dedicated publication, as well as online www.vertikal.net reaching over

90,000 visitors a month all over the world.Call or email us today to find out about our special rates

Jobs Wanted postings are free.

[email protected] +44 (0)8707 740436

If responding to one of the adverts pleasesay you saw it in Cranes&Access.

cranes&access

We are a leading National provider of Powered Access equipment with major expansion plans starting in 2009.

Access Rentals are now looking to recruitexperienced Depot Managers, Supervisors,& Account Managers throughout the UK.Ideally but not essential your background will be in PoweredAccess, with a firm knowledge and understanding of the multiplemarket sectors we service. You will need to be a highly motivated achiever with the ambitionto progress your career within this dynamic industry leader.In return you will become part of our already successful & valuedteam offering a remuneration package & benefits you wouldexpect from a market leader.

Think this might be you? And want to find out more?Then simply email your details & current CV to [email protected]

For these vacancies and other opportunities please visit ‘careers’ on our website at www.accessrentals.com or www.makingaccesseasy.com

Access Rentals Ltd. Stafford Park 6, Telford, Shropshire, TF3 3BQ

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Wanted For New London DepotLand to rent or buy and staff

Easi-UpLifts, the market leaders in access equipment, is expanding its UK sales andrental operation into the London area in early 2009.

The access company is looking for a yard and workshop to rent or buy, ideally locatedon approx 1 acre in West Essex or West Kent, with convenient access to the M25.

Phone Harry McArdle (Ireland) +353 (0)87 258 0298.

Easi UpLifts is also recruiting a Depot Manager,

Hire Controllers, Mechanics and Sales Staff

for our new London depot. Please contact

Fergus McArdle +44 (0)7500 601 929

50,000 visitors/month!

w w w.vertikal.netACCESS EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS

Aichi www.aichi.deAIRO www.airo.comAlimak www.alimak.co.ukAltrex B.V. www.altrex.comBarin www.barin.itBasket www.basket-platforms.comBil jax www.biljax.comBison - Palfinger www.bisonpalfinger.comBravi www.braviisol.comCMC www.cmc-platforms.comCTE www.ctelift.comDenka Lift www.wi-industries.comDino Lift www.dinolift.comEsda www.esda-fahrzeugwerke.deGenie www.genieindustries.comGSR Spa www.gsrspa.itHaulotte www.haulotte.comHinowa Tracked Aerial Platforms www.hinowa.comHolland Lift www.hollandlift.comIteco www.itecolift.itJLG www.jlgeurope.comLeguan Lifts www.leguanlifts.comManitou www.manitou.comMatilsa www.matilsa.esMEC www.mec-awp.comNifty Lift www.niftylift.comOil&Steel www.oilsteel.comOmega Platforms www.omegaplatforms.comOmme Lift www.ommelift.dkRanger tracked access www.tracked-access.co.ukRuthmann www.ruthmann.deSkyhigh ww.skyhigh.beSnorkel www.snorkelusa.comSUP www.supelefant.comTeupen www.teupen.infoTurner Access www.turner-access.co.ukUpright International www.uprighteuro.comVersalift distributors (UK) Ltd www.versalift.co.ukWorldlift www.wi-industries.com

MAST CLIMBERS & HOISTSAlimak-HEK www.alimakhek.comLTC Hoists www.ltcscaff.co.ukLTECH www.ltech.ruSafi www.safi.it

PLATFORM RENTAL2 Cousins Access Limited www.2cousins.co.ukAA Access (Specialists) www.aaaccess.co.ukAccess Link www.accesslink.bizAccess Platforms Direct www.accessplatformsdirect.co.ukAerial Platforms Ltd www.aerialplatformsltd.co.ukAFI- Uplift www.afi-uplift.co.ukBucks Access Rentals Ltd www.bucksaccessrentals.co.ukEasi up Lifts www.easiuplifts.comES Access Platforms Ltd www.esaccess.co.ukFacelift www.facelift.co.ukHi-reach www.hi-reach.co.ukLTC Powered Access www.ltcaccess.co.ukLTECH www.ltech.ruManlift Hire www.manlift.ieMax Access www.maxaccess.co.ukNationwide Access www.nationwideaccess.co.ukPanther Platform Rentals www.platform-rentals.co.ukPeter Hird www.peter-hird.co.ukRapid Platforms www.rapidplatforms.co.ukSkylift Hire www.skylift.ieUniversal Platforms www.universalplatforms.comWilson Access www.wilsonaccess.co.uk

NEW & USED PLATFORMSAccess Business www.accessbusiness.nlAccess Platforms Direct www.accessplatformsdirect.co.ukAccess Platform Sales www.accessplatforms.co.ukAccess Sales International www.accesssalesint.co.ukAdvanced Access Platforms www.aaplatforms.co.ukAFI Resale www.afi-resale.co.ukA.J. Access Platforms www.accessplatforms.comBaulift www.baulift.deBrodrene Jorgensen AS www.brjorgen.noCaunton -Access www.cauntonaccess.comEasi-uplifts www.easiuplifts.comFacelift www.facelift.co.ukFlesch www.Flesch-Arbeitsbuehnen.de

Genie www.genieindustries.comInstant Holland www.instant-holland.nlJLG www.jlgeurope.comKermco www.kermco.co.uk Kunze GmbH www.KUNZEgmbh.deLisman www.lisman.nlLTECH www.ltech.ruManlift Sales www.manlift.ieMax Access www.maxaccess.co.ukMech-Serv (GB) Ltd www.mech-serv.co.ukNationwide Access www.nationwideaccess.co.ukPeter-Hird Ltd www.peter-hird.co.ukTracked Access www.trackedaccess.comPlatform Sales www.platformsales.co.ukPlatform Sales Europe www.platformsaleseurope.comPromax Access www.promaxaccess.comRapid Platforms www.rapidplatforms.co.ukRitchie Bros auctions www.rbauction.comSkylift Hire www.skylift.ieThanner www.USED-Worklift.comTurner Access www.turner-access.co.ukTVH - Group Thermote & Vanhalst www.tvh.beUniversal Platforms www.universalplatforms.comWilson Access www.wilsonaccess.co.uk

ALLOY SCAFFOLD TOWERSAltrex www.altrex.comInstant www.instantupright.comSvelt www.svelt.itTurner Access www.turner-access.co.ukUpRight www.uprighteuro.com

SPECIAL/BESPOKE ACCESS & LIFTING SOLUTIONSKermco www.kermco.co.ukPlatform Sales www.platformsales.co.ukH&A Height Services www.ha-heightservices.com

SPECIAL & NICHE PLATFORM RENTALEasi UpLifts www.easiuplifts.comFacelift www.facelift.co.ukMax Access www.maxaccess.co.ukPanther Platform Rentals www.platform-rentals.co.ukTracked Access www.trackedaccess.comRapid Platforms www.rapidplatforms.co.ukUniversal Platforms www.universalplatforms.comWilson Access www.wilsonaccess.co.uk

SPECIALIST SCAFFOLDINGLTC Specialist Scaffolding www.ltcscaff.co.uk

TRAINING CENTRES & TRAINERSAccess Platforms Direct www.accessplatformsdirect.co.ukAccess Platform Sales www.accessplatforms.co.ukActive Safety www.activerentals.co.ukAFI www.afi-uplift.co.ukAinscough www.ainscoughtraining.co.ukAJ Access www.accessplatforms.comAvon Crane www.avoncrane.co.ukCentral Access www.central-access.co.ukDavis Access Platforms www.davisaccessplatforms.comES Access Platforms Ltd www.esaccess.co.ukFacelift www.facelift.co.ukGenie www.genieindustries.comHCS www.hydrauliccraneservices.co.ukHi-Reach www.hi-reach.co.ukHiab www.hiab.comHird www.peter-hird.co.ukJLG Training www.jlgeurope.comKingfisher Access www.kingfisheraccess.co.ukL&B Transport www.lbtransport.co.ukLoxam www.loxam-access.co.ukLifting Equipment Training www.letltd.co.ukLTC Training Services www.ltctrainingservices.co.ukNationwide www.nationwideaccess.co.ukNorfolk Training Services www.norfolktraining.co.ukPanther Platform Rentals www.platform-rentals.co.ukRapid Platforms www.rapidplatforms.co.ukSkylift Hire www.skylift.ieSouthern Crane & Access www.southerncranes.co.ukTH White www.thwhite.co.ukTerex Atlas (UK) Ltd. www.atlascranes.co.ukThe Platform Company www.platformcompany.co.ukTurner Access www.turner-access.co.ukUniversal Platforms www.universalplatforms.comWilson Access www.wilsonaccess.co.uk

on line Access&Lifting directory – Visit these companies in one click



OVER 4 million Hits a Month • OVER 90,000 Visitors a MonthOVER 1.2 million pages views each month

TRAINING ASSOCIATIONS & NETWORKSAllmi www.allmitraining.co.ukAWPT www.awpt.orgIPAF www.ipaf.orgNational Access and Scaffolding Confederation www.nasc.org.ukPasma www.pasma.co.uk

CRANE MANUFACTURERSGrove www.groveworldwide.comKobelco www.kobelco-cranes.comLiebherr www.Liebherr.com Maeda www.maedaminicranes.co.uk Mantis Cranes www.mantiscranes.ieTadano Faun www.tadanofaun.deTerex-Demag www.terex-cranes.comUnic Cranes www.unic-cranes.co.ukUnikran www.unikran.ruValla www.valla-cranes.co.ukVanson www.vansoncranes.com

CRANE HIREAinscough www.ainscough.co.ukBerry Cranes www.berrycranes.co.ukCity Lifting www.citylifitng.co.uk Hewden www.hewden.co.ukLadybird tower crane hire www.ladybirdcranehire.co.ukMantis Cranes www.mantiscranes.ieMcNally crane hire www.cranehire-ireland.com Port Services Ltd Heavy Crane division www.portservices.co.uk

MINI CRANE HIREJT Mini Crane Hire www.jtminicranes.co.ukLTECH www.ltech.ruPeter Hird www.peter-hird.co.ukTracked Access www.trackedaccess.com

NEW & USED CRANESAGD Equipment Ltd www.agd-equipment.co.ukCranes UK www.cranesuk.netCrowland Cranes www.crowlandcranes.co.ukImmo Cranes www.immo-cranes.comJones-Iron Fairy www.jonesironfairy.co.ukKobelco www.kobelco-cranes.comMantis Cranes www.mantiscranes.ieM. Stemick www.stemick-krane.deP.V. Adrighem BV www.adrighem.comTerex Demag www.terex-cranes.comUsed Cranes CCK www.used-cranes.deValla UK Ltd www.valla-cranes.co.ukUCM www.ucmholland.nl

SELF ERECTING TOWER CRANESAirtek safety www.airteksafety.comCity Lifting www.citylifitng.co.ukLadybird tower crane hire www.ladybirdcranehire.co.ukMantis Cranes www.mantiscranes.ieVanson www.vansoncranes.com

LORRY/TRUCK LOADER CRANES Effer www.effer.itFassi UK www.fassiuk.comHiab www.hiab.comPalfinger www.palfinger.com

TELESCOPIC HANDLERSGenie www.genieindustries.comHaulotte www.haulotte.comJLG www.jlgeurope.comLTECH www.ltech.ruManitou www.manitou.comMec Telehandlers www.mecawp.com Merlo www.merlo.co.uk

OUTRIGGER PADS, MATS & ROADWAYSEco power pads www.outriggerpads.co.ukTMC lifting supplies www.crowlandcranes.co.uk/tmcTPA Ltd www.tpa-ltd.co.uk

To arrange your listing in the ACCESS and LIFTING EQUIPMENT DIRECTORY: Tel: 08707 740436 Fax: 01295 768223 Email: [email protected] entry in our online directory with hot-link to your website

and publication here costs just £175/€280 for a whole year

Don't see a category that fits your product/service?Let us know and we can always add one.

USA DISTRIBUTION & LOGISTICSPacific Equipment Logistic www.pacificlogistic.com

NEW & USED TELEHANDLERSLisman www.lisman.nlLTECH www.ltech.ruSkylift Hire www.skylift.ieVHS Vissers Heftruck Service www.vhsbladel.nl

PARTS & SERVICE SUPPLIERSCaunton - Access www.caunton-access.comCrowland Cranes www.crowlandcranes.co.ukDavis Access Platforms www.davisaccessplatforms.com IPS www.ips-ltd.bizJLG www.jlgeurope.comMech-Serv (GB) Ltd www.mech-serv.co.ukTVH - Group Thermote & Vanhalst www.tvh.beUnified Parts www.unifiedparts.com

SAFETY EQUIPMENTAGS www.ags-btp.frAirtek equipment www.airteksafety.comSMIE www.smie.com

STRUCTURAL REPAIRSAvezaat Cranes www.avezaat.comCrowland Cranes www.crowlandcranes.co.uk/tmcJohn Taylor Crane Services Ltd www.jtcranes.co.uk

WIRE ROPETeufelberger Seil www.teufelberger.comCasar www.casar.de

BATTERY MANUFACTURERS/SUPPLIERSEnergy Batteries www.energy-batteries.com ManBat www.manbat.co.uk Trojan Battery www.trojanbattery.com

CONTROL SYSTEMSMOBA Automation www.moba.deIntercontrol www.intercontrol.de

SOFTWAREMCS Rental Software www.mcs.co.uk

EQUIPMENT AUCTION HOUSESRitchie Brothers www.rbauction.com

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONSALLMI www.allmitraining.co.ukEWPA www.ewpa.com.auIPAF www.ipaf.orgOSHA www.osha.govPASMA www.pasma.co.uk

RENTAL MANAGEMENT SOFTWAREHigher Concept Software www.higherconcept.co.ukInsphire www.insphire.com

ANCILLARY EQUIPMENTTMC lifting supplies www.crowlandcranes.co.uk/tmc

HEAVY LIFT PLANNING & SUPERVISIONHLI Consulting www..hliconsulting.com

EVENTSAPEX www.apexshow.com Bauma www.bauma.deConexpo www.conexpoconagg.comIntermat www.intermat.frPlatformers Days www.platformers-days.deSED www.sed.co.ukVertikal Days www.vertikaldays.net

• USED EQUIPMENT • SPARE PARTS • RECRUITMENT • RECONDITIONING • HIRE • WANTED ••

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8 Snowdon Road, Middlesbrough,

Cleveland TS2 1LP

Tel: 01642 218607 Fax: 01642 217149

E-mail: [email protected]

Web: www.ha-heightservices.com

ECO LIFToutrigger pads• Manufactured in Germany to the highest standards

from regenerated polyethylene• Safe and easy to handle will not splinter• No water absorption• High resistance to impact and vertical pressures• Under normal working conditions unbreakable• Inbuilt memory, adapting to working surface• Custom sizes available• Supporting - mobile cranes, self erecting

tower cranes, loader cranes, aerial work platforms,concrete pumps, tele handlers

• Load bearing capacities from 5 to 300 tonnes• 3 year warranty against breakage

Bill Green @ PLC SalesTel: +44 (0) 1449 674 154 Mob: +44 (0) 7885 020 582

Fax: +44 (0) 1449 674 173Email: [email protected] Web: www.outriggerpads.co.uk

The UK’s Leading Supplier


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YOURYOUR Direct Route to Access…..• Sales of New and Used access platforms

• Training and Instruction anywhere in the UK

• Equipment Finance options include Spot Hire,

Contract Rental & Buy-back (subject to status)

• Worldwide Export with in-house shipping service

• Wir Sprechen Deutsch…Se Habla Español….

• Parliamo Italiano…..

• Experienced Access people

T: 01483 475390

F: 01483 486468

M: 07717-779541

E: [email protected]

www.accessplatformsdirect.co.uk



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Access Platform SalesN E W • U S E D • T R A I N I N G • S E R V I C E

AERIAL K16 (1996)Trailer mounted platform.52’ working height. Diesel/battery.Serviced & tested.

NIFTYLIFT HEIGHT RIDER 12NDE (1999) Self propelled boom.40’ working height. Narrow, bi-energy.Repainted, serviced & tested.

NIFTYLIFT 120T (2002)Trailer mounted platform40' working height. Mains 240v.Serviced & tested.

SNORKEL S1930 (2003)Self propelled scissor lift.25' working height. Battery. Serviced & tested.

GENIE Z34/22N (2004)Self propelled boom40’ working height. Battery.Serviced & tested.

Leewood Business Park, Upton, Huntingdon, PE28 5YQTel: +44 (0) 1480 891251 Fax: +44 (0) 1480 891162

e-mail: [email protected]

SPIDER TST29 (1999)Special high reach platform 94’ working height. Battery/mainselectric.. Repainted, serviced & tested.

NIFTYLIFT 90 (2001)Trailer mounted platform. 31' working height. Mains.Serviced & tested.

SNORKEL TB60 (2000)Self propelled boom66’ working height. Diesel 4 wd.Repainted, serviced & tested.

TEREX TA30N (1999)Self propelled boom.36' working height. Battery.Repainted, serviced & tested.

SKYJACK SJ3220 (1997)Self propelled boom. 36' working height. Battery. Repainted, serviced & tested.

GENIE RUNABOUT GR12 (2002)Self propelled personnel lift.18’ working height. Battery. Serviced & tested.

w w w . a c c e s s p l a t f o r m s . c o . u k

Library picture

GENIE GS-2646 (2000)Self propelled scissor lift.32’ working height. Battery.Serviced & tested.


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SUCCESS WITHIN REACH...

Works on delicate floors

Tackles rough terrain

Access through narrow doorways

Climbs stairs

Fast set up on uneven ground

All machines run on both diesel & electric

Re-Rent programme available from 3 months to 5 years

CALL US NOW ON 0870 225 5554

OR SEE OUR WEBSITE ATwww.spiderlift.co.uk

Working heights from 15 - 50 metres

Why choose SPIDERLIFT?

Available for

RE-Rent & Cross Hire


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