UFL warns of growing spate of monitoring equipment thefts from cranes in France

Mobile cranes at work on the Pantheon in Paris, France

Crane companies in France are being warned of a growing number of thefts from cranes left unattended.

The increasing number of thefts is a wide range of load monitoring equipment crucial to the safe operation of mobile and other cranes.

The warning of the thefts was made by French crane association UFL – the Union Française du Levage – which said the sharp increase in thefts was being reported across the country both in urban and rural areas.

UFL asked the French Police and other authorities for increased support to help combat the thefts. In the meantime, the association is warning its members and international companies operating in France to be aware of the problem and to take anti-theft measures whenever possible.

What cranes are being targeted?

UFL said the criminals are targeting new and old machines alike and are professional – they know what they are doing, clearly possessing the know-how to get into the crane and being aware of the location of the relevant parts of the system.

Commenting on the issue Eric Stroppiana, UFL president, and technical and commercial director at Groupe Foselev, said, “This is a growing problem. The thefts appear to be professional and well-organised – presumably the equipment is being resold and probably taken out of the country but at this stage we don’t know more.”

Hervé Rebollo, managing director at DLR, the national federation UFL is a member of, added, “The thefts are at a level we have never seen before. The situation is crazy and the police and the authorities are not doing enough.”

UFL is compiling a file of incidents to illustrate the scale of the problem and to put pressure on the authorities to take action. As a result, it is asking any company that has suffered such a theft to get in touch. Details are on the association’s website: www.uflevage.fr

UFL is a member of the European Association of Abnormal Road Transport and Mobile Cranes (ESTA).