Potain tower crane for Asian market

Wisconsin, USA-headquartered crane manufacturer Manitowoc has added to its range of Potain topless tower cranes for the Asian market with the MCT 185.

Manitowoc’s MCT 185 can be transported in five containers

Built at Manitowoc’s facility in Zhangjiagang, China, the crane has a lifting capacity of eight tonnes. This places it at the lower end of Potain’s topless range. It has a 65 metre jib and can be transported in five containers. This is possible, Manitowoc says, because it has minimised the dimensions and weight of the crane’s components. This also simplifies the crane’s assembly, the company added.

Manitowoc said its approach to minimising dimensions and weight is illustrated by the shorter, simpler ballast shape of the counter-jib. This is available in two lengths: 13.5 m for use with a 30 m to 45 m jib; or 16 m for a 50 m to 65 m configuration. Manitowoc says this allows users to position the crane more efficiently – an increasingly important consideration on congested jobsites.

Customers can choose from Potain’s existing 1.6 m (L46) and 2 m (L68) mast sections, both of which use pinned joints designed for fast, easy connection. Also available is Manitowoc’s new 7.5 m-high S46JR reinforced basic mast. This is designed for taller crane setups, with freestanding heights for the MCT 185 up to 59.2 m. Manitowoc said that on a well-prepared site the MCT 185 can be assembled in 1.5 days.

Lifting capacity at the end of the jib is 1.5 tonnes. A selection of Potain LVF hoists are available to enable users to customise lifting operations or load control to suit jobsite requirements.

The crane comes with Manitowoc’s newly introduced 30kW 40 LVFC 20 Optima winch as standard. It has a 456 m rope capacity and is capable of hoisting one tonne at speeds of up to 98 m/min.

A 37 kW 50 LVF 20 Optima winch, which lifts 1.1 tonnes at up to 121 m/min, or a 45 kW 60 LVFC 20 Optima, which lifts one tonne at up to 120 m/min and has 553 m of wire rope, can be specified as optional extras.

Manitowoc said the LVF and LVFC winches offer continuously variable speed control. This, Manitowoc said, enables operators to fine-tune each pick from the standard S110 Smartview cab. A V140S Vision cab can also be specified.

The crane’s horizontal movement is provided by four trolley mechanisms which provide speeds of up to 80 m/min. Manitowoc believes its new tower crane will be particularly well-suited for urban and infrastructure projects.

“Topless cranes are becoming the go-to solution for the speed and flexibility they bring to jobsites,” said Kwong-Joon Leong, regional product manager for Asia – tower cranes, Manitowoc. “The integration of the MCT 185 into our topless range opens up even more possibilities for contractors and is backed by the industry-leading technical support that is synonymous with Potain.”

Assembly is possible in one-and-a-half days, says Manitowoc