Crawler Crane
The crawler crane is a specific type of mobile crane that is offered with either a telescopic boom or a lattice boom which moves upon crawler tracks. As this model is a self-propelled crane, it could move around a jobsite and completing tasks without a lot of set-up. Due to their huge size and weight, crawler cranes are rather pricey and even hard to transport from one location to another. The crawler's tracks offer the machine stability and enable the crane to work without utilizing outriggers, however, there are some models which do use outriggers. As well, the tracks provide the movement of the machine.
Early Mobile Cranes
Originally, the first mobile cranes were mounted to train cars and move along specifically made short rail lines. Once the 20th century arrived, the crawler tractor changed and this brought the introduction of crawler tracks to the agricultural business and the construction industry. Not long after, the crawler tracks were adopted by excavators and this further showcased the equipment's versatility. It was not long after when manufacturers of cranes decided that the crawler track market was a safe bet.
The Very First Crawler Crane
Northwest Engineering, a crane manufacturer in the United States, was the very first to mount its crane on crawler tracks in the 1920s. It described the new machine as a "locomotive crane, independent of tracks and moveable under its own power." By the mid-1920s, crawler tracks had become the chosen means of traction for heavy crane uses.
The Speedcrane
Developed by Charles and Ray Moore of Chicago, Illinois; the Moore Speedcrane was among the first to attempt to copy rail lines for cranes. Manufactured within Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Speedcrane was 15 ton, steam-powered, wheel-mounted crane. During the year 1925, a company known as Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co, from Manitowoc, Wisconsin recognized the potential and the marketability of the tracked crane. They decided to team up with the Moore brothers so as to manufacture it and go into business.