Tadano AC 7.450-1 all terrain crane for the Victoria Tower in Mannheim

Tadano AC 7.450-1 all terrain crane lifts cooling unit to top of 100-meter-tall Victoria Tower in Mannheim.

For the Scholpp team from Mannheim, the job was an exciting occasion that would see them use their massive 81-meter luffing jib on their Tadano AC 7.450-1 for the first time ever. In order to make sure that everything would run smoothly, the company decided to make use of assistance from the manufacturer in the form of Tadano service technician Norbert Kraus.

Scholpp Mannheim Branch Manager Florian Schmid found it extremely important to have an experienced Tadano service technician on site during the job being carried out for Gloram Real Estate: “Having an expert you can rely on really relieves a lot of the stress and uncertainty associated with jobs that are out of the ordinary, and this lift certainly was one of them.” A bit of an understatement, given that the lift came with a number of unique challenges: For starters, lifting the 2.5-tonne cooling unit to the roof of the Victoria Tower at a height of just under 100 meters would require a hook height of 125 meters. This was due to the conditions at the heavily developed area behind the Mannheim Hauptbahnhof train station, which forced the Scholpp team to carry out the lift with a wide radius of 70 meters. “In order to be able to achieve that hook height, we set up the AC 7.450‑1 with a 47.3-meter boom length and the 81-meter luffing jib with a Superlift configuration and 130 tonnes of counterweight,” reports Norbert Kraus. But the work site had another challenge waiting: Before the lift, the team identified the overhead lines of the tram close-by as posing a significant safety risk. However, it also determined that the risk could be eliminated by taking two measures: “We not only used the crane’s working range limiter during the lift, but also had a signalperson continuously monitor the crane’s distance from the overlines,” Florian Schmid explains. In addition, the team made certain to coordinate its activities with Rhein-Neckar-Verkehr GmbH train dispatchers. With all this in place, the crane was able to safely bring the cooling unit to the required height despite various factors complicating the lift and to set it down with utmost precision at its intended destination on the roof of the Victoria Tower.

“Our decision to rely on assistance from the manufacturer definitely proved to be the right one. Not only that, but seeing Tadano’s professionalism and know-how in action once again was as remarkably impressive as always,” Florian Schmid says, full of praise for service technician Norbert Kraus, who then goes on to succinctly explain Tadano’s service philosophy: “Whether it be day or night: When a customer calls, we’re right there for them. Both to provide assistance during setup and to help overcome technical challenges.”

Jan Meißner, Managing Director of Operations, Regional Manager of the Rhein-Neckar Region at Scholpp is also more than satisfied with the assistance provided by the manufacturer and the way the lift ran smoothly: “We didn't want to take any risks when using the complete luffing jib for the first time. After all, every issue and every delay comes with additional costs and takes time away from other important work. That’s why we not only need a machine like the AC 7.450‑1 that delivers absolute reliability day in, day out, but also first-class service when needed – and we get both from Tadano,” he underscores.

The team at Scholpp will tell you that the Tadano AC 7.450-1 once again proved what it is made of during the job: “The unit is simply one-of-a-kind in its class as a seven-axle crane with short dimensions and an extremely compact outrigger base. It enables us to take on jobs for which other machines in its class are simply too big,” Florian Schmid points out. Jan Meißner can only agree: “There’s nothing quite like it on the market – regardless of the competitor.”