The new Terex hoist ... enhancing safety.

Terex Cranes has unveiled an innovative crane hoist that has been designed to improve safety and work life for tower crane operators.

The T-Lift crane hoist runs along a track that is connected to the outside of the tower and can reach any tower height, according to its manufacturer.

“The everyday work life for a tower crane operator is not easy. Most operators start their working day by climbing the tower crane section, which can be very high on sites with tall buildings,” says a spokesman for the company. “This involves time lost at the beginning and end of the shift to go up and down the tower via the stairs, a huge level of fatigue for the operator, with relief driver changeovers and rest breaks being key for crane drivers. In case of an emergency, or if any assistance is needed, the operator is far away from help, given the time it would take for support to climb the crane to get to the cab.”

“As a result, the T-Lift crane hoist by Terex has been welcomed with great enthusiasm by operators as a tool that will make their daily life easier and safer,” he remarks.

T-Lift can accommodate up to two people and runs at a speed that can reach 40 m per minute in the model with an inverter motor. It is adaptable to all Terex tower crane models, thanks to its versatile tie-in system, and is easy to install so it can be simply moved from one jobsite to another, according to the spokesman.

T-Lift maximises crane operating time and can be utilised at all weather conditions under a temperature range of -20 deg to 40 deg C.

“Even more importantly, the improved onsite safety was one of the first benefits appreciated by our customers who received the crane hoist, with one commenting, ‘If an operator needs additional support or assistance while in the air, the site’s rescue teams, or support crews, can now gain access to the cab in a faster and more effective work manner, rather than taking the time it takes to climb the crane to get to the cab to assist the operator’,” he points out.

Among other innovations at Terex Cranes, the company recently announced that its rough-terrain cranes can be fitted with the T-Link Telematics Platform, which provides customers with real-time information on the performance of their crane.

Marco Busconi, RT Engineering Director, says: “Rough-terrain cranes operate in challenging and often remote work environments. T-Link enables equipment owners to stay connected and keep track of their equipment and take advantage of the information to monitor and manage their fleet.”

T-Link enables customers to remotely access the operating data from their fleet of cranes to gain factual up-to-date information from the field, 24 hours a day from anywhere in the world via the internet connection on their computer, smartphone or tablet.

“The goal of telematics is to make life easier for equipment owners, to reduce the total cost of ownership and not inundate them with meaningless data. We offer standard reports but also the possibility to customise reports (combining multiple data and layout). It is about useful information that can help customers establish how they can increase productivity and mitigate downtime,” adds Busconi.

All data received is real-time, and customers can use this to optimise performance as well as control crane configuration data, crane status, alarms, crane position and scheduled maintenance alerts. T-Link helps to reduce crane downtime with predictive maintenance and faster crane service.