Tower cranes are being utilized often for huge building construction projects. They are necessary for the heavy lifting and placing of materials and machinery. Tower cranes provide a different design that provides a lot of advantages over more conventional cranes. These benefits consist of: quiet electrical operation, higher vertical lift, reduced space requirements and increased capacities.
Hammerhead Crane
The hammerhead crane is usually associated with a tower crane. The long horizontal jib is connected to a vertical tower, in this case. 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 travels along the length of the jib. The tower crane is capable of operating 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 assistance from a secondary crane. This really saves time in equipment expenses and provides a huge advantage in setup time too. Self-erecting cranes are usually remote-controlled from the ground, even though there are several models that have an operator cab built onto the jib.
The self-erecting crane is normally freestanding to allow them the opportunity to be moved around. There are several 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
Most urban work environments 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 great for such confined spaces. Nearly all tower cranes have a fixed horizontal jib. The driver is able to raise or lower a luffing jib in order to allow the crane to swing in a reduced radius.