Tower Cranes Grow to New Heights
In the tower crane business, the 1950s showcased many important milestones in tower crane development and design. There were a range of manufacturers were beginning to make more bottom slewing cranes that had telescoping mast. These machines dominated the construction industry for both apartment block and office construction. Many of the leading tower crane manufacturers abandoned the use of cantilever jib designs. Instead, they made the switch to luffing jibs and eventually, the use of luffing jibs became the regular practice.
In Europe, there were key improvements being made in the design and development of tower cranes. Usually, construction sites were constricted areas. Having to rely upon rail systems to move a large number of tower cranes, became very inconvenient and expensive. Some manufacturers were offering saddle jib cranes which had hook heights of 80 meters or 262 feet. These cranes were outfitted with self-climbing mechanisms that allowed parts of mast to be inserted into the crane so that it could grow along with the structures it was building upwards.
The long jibs on these particular cranes also covered a bigger work area. All of these developments precipitated the practice of building and anchoring cranes in the lift shaft of a building. After that, this is the method which became the industry standard.
The main focus on tower crane design and development from the 1960s began on covering a higher load moment, covering a larger job radius, climbing mechanisms and technology, faster erection strategies, and new control systems. In addition, focus was spent on faster erection strategies with the most essential developments being made in the drive technology department, amongst other things.