A pair of mobile cranes in the Gold Coast have transported Australia’s fastest boat 200-metres from a holding yard to the water.
Weighing in at four tonnes, the Southern Ocean 55 catamaran racing boat needed to be moved from a holding yard at Stieglitz Wharf in Jacobs Wells, Queensland.
In order to move the boat, the crew needed a crane that could handle the weight and was compact enough to carry it to the water on a narrow roadway.
Davos Crane Hire was selected to provide mobile crane services for the lift. The company selected a Terex Demag AC 44 City crane, with the support of a Terex MAC 25-4 pick and carry crane.
Davos Crane Hire Operations Manager, Adam Spies, said the company chose the AC 55 City crane for the job because it could handle the load on its own without outriggers and be used to transport the boat.
“The crane’s rubber load chart allowed us to do the whole project with two cranes. Without it, we may have had to use a third crane, which would have been much more costly and time consuming,” he said.
Related stories:
- Tadano’s GT600EL offers performance at a reasonable price
- Tandem lift to dismantle 100-year old bridge
- Demag AC 500-8 lifts 19t chimney liner 119m
Davos Crane Hire determined that lifting and transporting the boat would need to be done in three phases.
“First we needed to position a crane in a confined space so we could lift and reposition the catamaran to the driveway,” Spies said.
“Next, we had to lift and walk the boat down to the water, where we would then have to lift it over the top of trees before gently placing it on the water next to the dock.”
The operators drove to pick up the cranes from its depot in Nerang, Queensland, on the morning of the project. The AC 44 City crane was first positioned 15 metres away from the catamaran with its outriggers fully extended and a boom length of 33.9 metres.
By using this configuration, the team was able to avoid the need for any additional counterweight. Two crew members rigged four corners of the 3.7 metres tall boat, which was lifted from the original location at a 15-metre radius over the top of a nearby shed.
Once clear of the shed, he boat was placed on the ground in a clearing.
“This initial lift was a bit tricky,” Spies said. “The area was tight. On one side we had a row of trees and on the other a shed, so our slewing area was limited, but we pulled it off without any issues.”
The second phase required a tandem lift to move 200 metres to the waterfront. The AC 55 City crane was positioned toward the rear of the boat with its boom in the shortest position. The MAC 25-4 crane was at the front of the boat and was required to travel backwards for better manoeuvrability.
“We had to temporarily remove some signs, keep our slings as short as possible and both cranes’ booms in their lowest positions,” Spies said.
The operators and riggers also had to negotiate a 90 degree turn with a parked car in the corner.
“We had to take the turn wider than we would have liked,” he said. “This again proved to be a challenge because there was a 6-meter-tall workshop that we had to stay clear of. After making the corner, there was a new caravan parked on the narrow road that both cranes had to lift the boat over.”
After it had been placed on the ground by the waterfront, the final lift was required. The AC 55 City crane was used with outriggers fully extended and an 18-metres lift radius.
Timing was important for the lift, was it needed to align with the incoming high tide to place the boat in the water at a radius on the crane’s load chart.
“To place the boat in the water we had to lift over the tops of trees and close enough to the dock so it could be tied down — it wasn’t easy,” Spies said.
“I’m proud of my team for the work they did on this project. They do a great job on every job. We were also impressed with the AC 55 City crane on every phase of this job. That machine’s load chart with and without outriggers saved time and money.”