The job at a high-rise construction site in the Swiss municipality of Dübendorf (Zürich) not only required a crane with enormous reach that would be able to erect tower cranes with a height of up to 100 meters, but also a very compact design in order to fit within the tight space there. “That’s precisely the kind of conditions for which we got the new Tadano AC 7.450-1, which met both requirements perfectly and accordingly was the best possible machine for the job,” reports Emil Egger AG Project Manager Beat Greuter.
However, it was not just the short dimensions that made the AC 7.450-1 the crane of choice for Egger when it came to tackling the project – on top of that, the Tadano seven-axle unit is characterized by an outrigger system that is also tremendously compact. “And we were able to adjust it perfectly to fit with the columns at the parking garage where we positioned the crane – on the roof, mind you. Without the outrigger system’s extraordinary flexibility, we would have had some serious problems trying to put the crane in a workable position,” Beat Greuter explains.
“Tadano Surround View is extremely useful at tight work sites.”
In addition, the AC 7.450-1 was also able to shine at the work site due to yet another advantage: its Surround View camera system. “When we got to the work site, we noticed that there were pallets everywhere. I basically had no way to clearly see where something was in the way, and if I hadn’t had the camera system, I honestly wouldn’t have been able to position the crane without a signalperson – I don’t think I can even explain how much the Surround View system made things easier for us,” crane operator Max Frei reports. Project Manager Beat Greuter agrees: “Surround View is a really great tool that is extremely useful when extending the crane’s outriggers and makes sure that the crane operator always has his crane’s slewing radius in sight.”
Well-equipped with SSL
To erect the three tower cranes that had to be assembled, the Egger team set up the Tadano AC 7.450-1 with an SSL configuration with a 57.3-meter main boom, plus a 42-meter luffing jib at an angle of 60° and 70 tonnes of counterweight. This enabled the crane to reach the required lifting height of 100 meters and lift the construction crane components, which weighed up to 19 tonnes. By the way, as far as the Swiss company is concerned, the SSL Sideways Superlift system is one of the vital enhancements to the AC 7.450-1: With the new design, the Superlift arms are now mounted all the way in the front, on the head of the base section, meaning that they are ultimately longer and accordingly well-suited to larger lifting capacities.
This also proved to be extremely useful during the job, and helped make sure everything went smoothly: “All in all, we were at the work site for three days erecting all three cranes – exactly as scheduled. And it really was a perfect job: The weather was beautiful and our new AC 7.450-1 ran in tip-top shape from beginning to end. This Tadano machine is simply amazing, and we’re really proud of the fact that we have the first model in Switzerland and are putting it to good use,” Beat Greuter says, visibly delighted.
