Tandem lift for Grove cranes

Spanish crane rental company Tinlohi used its Grove 250 tonne capacity GMK5250XL-1 and 400 tonne capacity GMK6400 cranes in tandem to dismantle a wind turbine in Palencia, northwest Spain.

The cranes were also used on an industrial site to move fragile components to an inside staging area.

Wind work

The 250 and 400 tonne capacity cranes worked in tandem to dismantle a wind turbine (Photo: Manitowoc)

To dismantle the wind turbine, the GMK6400 was rigged with 35 tonnes of counterweight to support its maximum 60 metre boom plus a 30 metre fixed jib. It lifted just over two-thirds of the load.

Alongside it, the five-axle GMK5250XL-1 was also rigged with its maximum boom (78.5 metres) and fitted with a 9.4 metre jib.

The counterweight was 30.5 tonnes for the GMK5250XL-1 to manage its role in supporting one-third of the load. Components were lowered from a height of 90 metres.

Alberto Lozano, commercial director at Tinlohi, said, “Although each load was only 11 tonnes, the 36 metre-long turbine blades were too tricky to handle using just one crane.

“It goes without saying that local site conditions were windy, and the unusual profile of the turbine blades made them complicated to handle.”

Second task

Less than an hour’s drive south of the wind farm in Valladolid, the two Grove cranes reunited for a complicated dismantling task.

This time the load was heavier, with each crane bearing an equal share of the burden as they removed a 55 tonne drying tube from a gasification plant.

The cranes worked in tandem to remove a 55 tonne drying tube from a gasification plant (Photo: Manitowoc)

With boom length set to 40 metres, the GMK6400 employed 45 tonnes of counterweight, while the GMK5250XL-1 was configured with 62.5 tonnes of counterweight and a 41.2 metre boom.

“This was another challenging project, as we had to coordinate the swing of each lift to pass the tube section between silos into the staging area,” said Lozano.

“For each of the jobs, the weight of the load was not really an issue. The challenge was the size of the components and the complications of local conditions.

“We already knew we wanted to use two cranes for each project, and they had to be dependable. So, it was an easy choice to select the GMK6400 and GMK5250XL-1.”