For huge building construction projects, tower cranes are used rather frequently. These machinery are rather essential for heavy lifting as well as placing materials and equipment. Tower cranes provide a unique design which provides numerous benefits over more conventional cranes. These advantages include: higher vertical lift, quiet electrical operation, reduced space requirements and increased capacities.
Hammerhead Crane
A hammerhead crane is a different design which is most often associated with a tower crane. In this situation, a long horizontal jib is attached to a vertical tower. One end of the jib extends horizontally over the worksite and the other end of the jib acts as a counterweight. On the hammerhead crane, there is a trolley. This trolley has the lifting cable and can travel along the length of the jib. The tower crane can operate anywhere within the jib's radius.
Self-Erecting Tower Cranes
A self-erecting crane is capable of completely assembling itself at the jobsite without any help from a secondary crane. This provides a huge advantage in setup time and really saves time in equipment expenses as well. Self-erecting cranes are normally remote-controlled from the ground, though there are some models which have an operator cab built onto the jib.
The self-erecting crane is normally freestanding to enable them the opportunity to be moved around. There are some models that have a telescoping tower which enables the crane to work at various heights without the need to reconfigure the tower.
Luffing Jib Tower Crane
The majority of urban work settings do not have enough space or clearance for the jib to rotate freely without existing buildings blocking its movement. A luffing jib tower crane is ideal for such confined spaces. Nearly all tower cranes have a fixed horizontal jib. The driver can raise or lower a luffing jib in order to allow the crane to swing in a reduced radius.