Indian crane hire company Steel Carriers was recently tasked with lifting a 50-m-long, 50-t steel structure for a DPC (deep pan conveyor) to a height of 60 m between two silos at a cement works in Gujarat. The team had to perform the lift at a radius of up to 40 m, which clearly called for a tandem lift. To deliver the job, Steel Carriers chose its Tadano AC 1000-9 and AC 500-1 all-terrain cranes.

The job was part of a project to repair cyclone damage at a cement plant in the Indian state of Gujarat. One part of the conveyor bridge had been so badly damaged that it had to be completely replaced.

“Obviously, we could have used one of our big Tadano lattice boom crawler cranes for this job,” explained Sunil Makad, director of Steel Carriers. “But in this case, the all-terrain cranes proved to be the better option. That’s partly because we could get them to the site quicker, and partly because they were easier to position in the very limited space available at the site.”

Challenging operation

It took Steel Carriers three days to transport both cranes and 17 support trucks from its branch in Mumbai to the jobsite in Gujarat. Once arrived, the team had the cranes set up and ready for the lift in just two days. The AC 1000-9 was set up in the HA‑SSL configuration using the 100-m main boom and Sideways Superlift, since there was not enough space at the site to assemble a fly jib. For the AC 500‑1, it was set up in the WIHI-SSL configuration.

“The differing crane configurations and the fact that they have differing lifting capacities made the tandem lift much more challenging for the operators to execute,” said Mr Makad. The two cranes lifted the 50-t load to the required 60-m height, then rotated it by 90 degrees and set it down in the required position with surgical precision.

Despite the challenges and complexities involved, Steel Carriers needed only a five-man team for this lift: two crane operators, two assistants and one site manager. Together they completed the entire operation – from setting the cranes up, to performing the lift, to dismantling the cranes afterwards – in just 15 days.

“It just goes to show how quickly and efficiently you can get even very difficult jobs done if you have a highly skilled and experienced team and the right cranes,” said Mr Makad. “That’s why, for me, the combination of our people and Tadano cranes always makes for the absolute dream team.”