New five axle AT from Grove

Manitowoc has launched a new five-axle, 110 tonne capacity all terrain crane at its Grove factory in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, during a customer open day.

The GMK5110-1 replaces the GMK5100 which was introduced in 2000. It has a five section 50.6 m telescopic boom. Like other Grove cranes, it uses Manitowoc's Megaform boom, which is designed to give greater rigidity in the base section and save weight without loss of capacity, says the company.

There is also an 18 m swingaway jib for additional reach. Two 8 m boom extensions further boost reach to give a maximum tip height of 87 m. Maximum outreach is 46 m.

The new crane's load chart means greater lifting capacities at all radii, says the manufacturer. An example of its capabilities is that at the maximum boom length it can lift 16 tonnes rather than the 12 tonnes maximum of the GMK5100 at the same extension.

"We have tried to maintain the same characteristics of the 5100 because it was such a good crane," said Frans Vanwinkel, senior vice president of sales and marketing for EMEA. The core market for the GMK5110-1 is in the Middle East oil fields, but it has also found popularity in wider parts of Asia, Africa and Germany, explained Vanwinkel. "That is why we decided revamp this product to continue these specific markets."

Speaking about the development of all terrains at Grove, Vanwinkel added, "If you look back over the recent history of the Grove product range to 2002 and 2003, we had in the programme seven machines starting from two axles to seven axles.

"From that time if you analysed the rest of the competition we were lagging behind the others. Manitowoc has spent a lot of money speeding up the development of products. In the five axle range we did not only close the gap, we went one step further. We have now in our programme products from a general five axle machine to a five axle which can be used in specific applications and specific markets."

Increased capacity

The company has also made a number of steps to increase manufacturing capacity. This includes transferring all production of two and three axle all terrains to Manitowoc's Niella Tanaro factory in Italy, from Wilhelmshaven which has also seen considerable expansion.

The largest part of this is a 2,670 square metre production hall and an adjoining 400 square metre office block. "Manitowoc has invested several million Euros in this phase of the expansion which will manage the complete assembly process for superstructures on the GMK range of all terrain cranes.

"It features two production lines, an engine assembly area and two new cells for boom assembly. This new building frees up capacity at the facility and means all completion work can now take place in a dedicated hall," explained Philippe Cohet, executive vice president for Manitowoc in EMEA.

Construction started on the new hall in July 2008, and crane production started in early September.