C&L, Cranes & Lifting, News

4,000-tonne crawler crane impresses on day one

XCMG's XGC88000 hit a milestone on debut, in a Yingkou shipyard, located in a coastal city in China's northeastern Liaoning Province.

On debut in Yingkou, China, the 4,000-tonne XCMG XGC88000 crawler crane completed job whereby it was “threading a needle at high altitudes”.

  • Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter to receive the latest news from Australasia’s lifting industry.
  • Don’t miss a lift and subscribe to our monthly magazine.
  • Download our latest digital magazine to catch up on the biggest news and developments in the crane industry.

The XGC88000 achieved its first milestone on Tuesday, by successfully lifting an 18-megawatt offshore wind turbine in a Chinese shipyard, located in a coastal city in China’s northeastern Liaoning Province.

The 18-megawatt offshore wind turbine, weighing close to 800-tonne, features a blade tip height of nearly 270m and a hub centre height of 145m.

XCMG utilised the XGC88000 crawler crane in luffing jib working conditions and according to a statement from XCMG, this marks the first instance within the industry that a 4,000-tonne crane has been applied in such conditions.

The XGC88000 has a maximum heavy boom length of 120m and is configured with an 108m main boom and a 33m fixed jib.

The installation of the 126m-blade represented a pivotal phase in the entire lifting process.

XMCG in a statement revealed the challenges of the large job.

“The task was akin to threading a needle at high altitudes, requiring the precise insertion of more than 170 bolts into their corresponding holes in the hub at nearly 150 meters above ground. Additionally, the blade is subject to swaying due to sea breezes during the installation, posing a risk of damage if not carefully managed. These factors combined to make the lifting operation extremely challenging.”

The XGC88000 performed with the support of auxiliary cranes. The processes whereby the crane needed to do a combination of slewing, centering, positioning and lifting was executed smoothly.

The operation was completed upon its first attempt.

 

Send this to a friend