Demag Ac 500-8

[Bran Cardello]

TheAC 500-8 is a powerful crane. The telescopic boom automatically telescopes with a single cylinder telescoping system. 8 metal sheaves integrated into the boom head allow for an increased lifting capacity. The increased lifting capacity gives the crane the ability to complete any lift. The crane is powered by a 653 horsepower Tier III compliant powerhouse of an engine. This engine can complete any job thrown at it.

The AC 500-8 was also designed with maneuverability in mind. The steering system includes a dual circuit hydro semiblock steering with an emergency steering pump. This gives the operator control and the ability to limit hazardous situations. The brake system includes a pneumatic dual circuit service brake acting on all wheels, disc brakes, a hydraulic retarder integrated into the transmission as a sustained action brake, an additional exhaust brake, a constant choke valve, and a spring loaded parking brake. By including this many brakes, if one fails, the operator can be confidant that it is possible to stop the crane and avoid potentially hazardous situations.

Virginia, USA-based crane rental house WO Grubb Crane Rental used its Demag AC 500-8 all terrain crane on a bridge replacement project in Lockhart, South Carolina. The task required hoisting and placing 30 concrete girders onto piers for construction of the new SC Highway 9/49 Broad River Bridge. The new bridge will replace a functionally obsolete 222.5 metre structure. The new structure is part of a US$20 million project to update multiple bridges in this area.

The next day, workers rigged the crane in its HA-SSL configuration with 180 tonnes of counterweight and had it ready to lift the girders. The Sideways Superlift was set to a 30-degree angle to provide the required lift capacity, especially when working at a long radius.

Over the course of the job the crane was derigged, moved and set up again four times. According to Tadano, its fast setup time helped facilitate this. Once the all terrain was in position, it completed all girder lifts planned for that location with working radii reaching 30.5 metres. Crew members then derigged the crane by removing the counterweight in preparation for the move to the next pad. The counterweight had to be removed due to the crane needing to travel across uneven ground and over the existing bridge. To help stay on schedule, though, the crew retracted the main boom and kept the Sideways Superlift and outriggers installed, enabling them to derig, move and setup the AC 500-8 in just one shift.

Add to Compare Capacity Class600 UStMax Main Boom Length183.7 ftMax System Length478.3 ftAxles8Designed for Maximum Lifting CapacityThe most compact 8-axle crane of its class

With its AC 500-8, Demag has once again proved just how much power and performance can be packed into a small space. The AC 500-8, like many other Demag cranes, is the most compact crane of its lifting capacity class: A carrier length of only 17.1 meters means that no other 8-axle unit is more compact.

The Demag AC 500-8 all-terrain crane has the shortest carrier length in its class and x-pattern outriggers designed to provide on-the-job stability. The crane also comes with the Demag patented Sideways Superlift (SSL) for a superior lifting performance.

The most compact 8-axle crane of its class

With its AC 500-8, Demag has once again proved just how much power and performance can be packed into a small space. The AC 500-8, like many other Demag cranes, is the most compact crane of its lifting capacity class: A carrier length of only 17.1 meters means that no other 8-axle unit is more compact.

Even though it has a compact design, the Demag AC 500-8 has an enormous reach: With a luffing jib, it reaches an impressive maximum system length of 145.8 meters, which it combines with enormous lifting power thanks to a number of engineering advantages.

The Demag AC 500-8 is a true powerhouse that can deliver enormous lifting power every day regardless of the lifting configuration it uses. There are two engineering details that are responsible for this: the extra strength provided by the Sideways Superlift system and the standard star-type outriggers, which reduce system deformation noticeably and accordingly provide for stability at higher lifting capacities.

When ordering the AC 500-8, INCANA included pretty much everything from the list of accessories, and made sure that the eight-axle unit came with the maximum level of equipment available, including a luffing jib, Superlift system, and the innovative IC-1 Plus control system. In other words, the crane is well prepared for any job that may come its way. And this is important, as INCANA needs the powerful AC 500-8 for a large number of demanding projects that include erecting wind turbines, building large infrastructure projects, lifting distillation columns at sugar mills, and work on the biggest roadbuilding project in Runion right now: The La nouvelle route du littoral coast highway, which goes over dikes and viaducts along most of its length. It is worth mentioning that the Demag AC 500-8 has already passed its first test with flying colors, as it got to show its enormous lifting capacity in a solid performance lifting a large bridge over a river.

The crew operating the new Demag crane have been impressed by how easy the Demag AC 500-8 all terrain cranes is to transport, maneuver around a jobsite and rig for lifts. The new crane has quickly become a favorite for this growing company.

The job description itself indicated that the project would be a unique challenge in many ways: First, the unwieldy gantry crane had to be unloaded from the delivery truck, after which its girder needed to be moved to the desired position with a tandem lift. Once there, it had to be kept suspended in the air so that the gantry crane's final assembly could be carried out. The reason? Setting the gantry down was impossible due to the goods being stored at the yard.

"The distances that had to be spanned and the associated radii, together with the load's weight, were what made us decide to use our AC 700 and AC 500-8 for this project," said project manager Marco Wilhelm, who was in charge of planning the lift at Wiesbauer GmbH & Co. KG.

Before the actual lift, however, the two cranes had to be set up at the site. This not only had to be done while operations were still ongoing, but also in such a way as to not interfere with them. Of course, this requirement would also apply when disassembling the cranes after successfully completing the lift. To make things even more challenging, operations continued six days per week, meaning that the Wiesbauer team could not count on the work there to slow down significantly.

The Wiesbauer team planned for the AC 700 to deal with the toughest part, as it would have to span the entire width of the yard, all the way to the rear gantry crane rail axis, with its load side. The maximum radius required for this was 42 m, while the maximum radius required for the AC 500-8 crane was 24 m. The fact that the AC 700-9 was able to handle the aforementioned radius made it possible to avoid using additional time-consuming and expensive equipment.

In order to ensure that they would be able to lift the 45-m-long, 15-m-tall, 58-tonne girder, the two cranes were configured with a main boom and 140 tonnes of counterweight. Once set up this way, they were ready to lift the load to a height of 15 meters and rely on their high precision to swing it to the exact position that had been planned for it. There, an additional telescopic crane was used to fully assemble the gantry crane while the latter's girder remained suspended in the air. This meant that the Terex Demag duo had to keep the load perfectly in place for several hours. "Keep in mind, however, that the two cranes and their booms are characterized by outstanding stability, so this didn't pose a problem at all," report crane operators Gnther Mhleck and Steven Zillmann. This enabled the Wiesbauer team to assemble the gantry crane in two working days as scheduled and complete the project to the customer's full satisfaction.

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Armin Neeb, general manager at the company, said of the acquisition: There were several reasons why we decided on the Demag AC 500-8, with one of them being the fact that the crane is the most compact eight-axle unit of its class thanks to a carrier length of just over 17 m.

The AC 500-8 also boasts a carrier length of only 17.1m, which, Terex said, makes it one of the most compact eight-axle machines in its class that can achieve a maximum system length of 145.8m with a luffing fly jib.

The Terex CTT 161 tower crane had more than proven its worth during the first stage of new construction for the Matthias-Claudius-Haus nursing home in Waldshut, Germany, so Waldshut-Tiengen-based construction company Schleith insisted on the use of a Terex crane for the second stage of construction as well. The subcontractor in charge, Lrrach-based Meier-Krantechnik, complied with the request and proceeded to order a Terex CTT 162-8 tower crane, the successor to the CTT 161.

"That was the first project where tOn behalf of Herrenknecht AG, MSG Krandienst GmbH loaded the drive system for a tunnel boring machine from a heavy goods vehicle to a ship at the Rhine port of Kehl. Due to the fact that the load had a large weight of 220 ton (200 t), the company decided to rely on the lifting power of a Demag duo consisting of two all-terrain cranes, a Demag AC 500-8 and a Demag AC 700-9.

Accordingly, the team's preparation work went smoothly. A total of four MSG team members needed only two hours per crane to prepare their machines for the lift, something that was mainly made possible by the ease of setup of both Demag cranes, according to the company.

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