WOLFFKRAN first saddle jib crane

According to the European Architectural Barometre, every third construction project in Europe uses prefabricated parts. A trend with significant implications for the tower crane industry calling for higher capacity cranes.

Volvo Buses India introduces completely built sleeper coach

Manufactured at the state-of-the-art Hosakote facility, the buses feature 39 luxury berths and 12.5 cu.m of personal luggage space

APL Apollo receives design patents for six innovative products

Structural steel tube manufacturer APL Apollo Tubes has recently received six registrations for its innovative products by the Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks.

APL Apollo receives design patents for six innovative products

The overall portfolio for APL Apollo Tubes has grown to 16 with the registrations

Demand for pick n carry cranes has strong correlation with industrial growth

The India mobile crane market is anticipated to register annual growth rate of over 5 per cent during the forecast period 2020-2025. Unfortunately, Due to unexpected Covid-19 pandemic, we can expect some challenges in terms of upcoming projects in India.

BKT solutions for the mining sector

The EARTHMAX tire range has been specifically designed to withstand the stress of the rough terrain typical of quarries and mines

The demand for off highway tyres is at an all time high

Rajiv Poddar, Jt. MD, BKT Tires

BKT designs prototype of its biggest-ever tyre

Prototype ready for the new giant product, in the 40.00 R 57 size, for rigid dump trucks

WOLFFKRAN invests in new location in Elsau, Switzerland

WOLFFKRAN Schweiz AG conducted a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of its new headquarters.

Can Mobile Cranes Lift the Mood?

Mobile cranes in India have transformed into safer and productive with changing design and new features to meet the upcoming demands from the user market. In the current scenario, can these developments in mobile cranes lift the market sentiments?

Terex MPS launches MJ55 jaw module

Terex MPS has introduced the MJ55 modular jaw crusher, designed for large quarries or contractors that want a stationary type design without the complexity of a normal stick-built plant.

Terex MPS launches MC320 cone crusher

Following the recent launch of the new TG/TGS series bushing cone crushers, Terex MPS has introduced the MC320 cone module.

Terex MPS launches MJ55 jaw module

Terex MPS has introduced the MJ55 modular jaw crusher, designed for large quarries or contractors that want a stationary type design without the complexity of a normal stick-built plant.

Terex MPS launches MJ55 jaw module

Terex MPS has introduced the MJ55 modular jaw crusher, designed for large quarries or contractors that want a stationary type design without the complexity of a normal stick-built plant.

Terex MPS launches MC320 cone crusher

Following the recent launch of the new TG/TGS series bushing cone crushers, Terex MPS has introduced the MC320 cone module. T

Tower Cranes for Heavy Lifts

COMANSA has launched a new model tower crane designed to work in projects, in which it is necessary to lift heavy loads.

Cranes at Paper Factory

Konecranes investigates the hoisting gears of the critical overhead cranes at the Palm paper factory, with Oil Analysis and Crane Reliability Study (CRS).

Grove GMK4100L installs major footbridge in Manila

Steel Centre Philippines, a specialist in the design, fabrication and erection of steel structures, used a Grove GMK4100L all-terrain crane to install a 28 m footbridge in the Philippines. Working for Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, a government agency, the company positioned the 20 t bridge in just 30 minutes.

COMANSA to showcase new 21LC1050 in bauma

Tower crane manufacturer COMANSA will be exhibiting in bauma its latest high capacity model, available worldwide since September 2018.

COMANSA to showcase new 21LC1050 in bauma

Tower crane manufacturer COMANSA will be exhibiting in bauma its latest high capacity model, available worldwide since September 2018.

Tower cranes for heavy lifts

COMANSA has launched a new model tower crane designed to work in projects, in which it is necessary to lift heavy loads.

COMANSA cranes build luxury residential complex in Nigeria

A luxury residential complex, Azuri Peninsula, is being built at the Marina District in Lagos. There are six COMANSA cranes working in this project all which belong to the fleet of the turnkey contractor ITB Nigeria FZE.

COMANSA launches new tower crane

COMANSA, one of the world?s main references in tower cranes for construction, launched a new model designed to work in projects in which it is necessary to lift heavy loads.

Vertical Growth

Tower crane market is now on revival path, which was going through a lull period till recently. Going forward, a steady growth of real estate market could see a further momentum in tower cranes.

Innovative welding technology transforms productivity

A pioneering new type of local vacuum electron beam welding technology developed in the UK by Cambridge Vacuum Engineering (CVE) is helping to revolutionise the power generation sector.

Customer benefit is our focus area

Liebherr is a major player in the crawler cranes market in India. Ghananeel Molankar, Divisional Head - Construction Machinery, Liebherr India, elaborates on the current market scenario in India and the products and services offered bythe company in India.

Mitsubishi Corporation awarded Iraq port contract

Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) has been awarded a contract for port construction in the Republic of Iraq. Extended by the General Company for Ports of Iraq (GCPI), the contract covers a port rehabilitation project in the country?s southern region of Basra, and is valued at approximately $110 million.

Cost-effective Precast Floor Production

Precast is a smart, industrialised way to build high-quality buildings of any type in a safe and affordable manner. Factory-made precast ensures shorter construction times, high profitability and consistently high quality.

Liebherr crawler cranes complete tandem hoist of Manchester bridge

As part of a major railway construction project in the North of England, the Scottish contractor Weldex used two Liebherr crawler cranes to complete a central construction phase. Recently both crawler cranes performed a tandem hoist for a 560-tonne arched bridge over the River Irwell in Manchester. The new railway bridge will link the city?s Piccadilly and Victoria stations.

Our plan is to have a production facility to build dredges for the local market

I have been involved in the Dredging business since 1982 and my mission is to make our clients successful so that they can grow their business and come back to us to buy more dredges. Charles Sinunu, Director - International Dredge Sales, DSC Dredge, USA, elaborates more on the company and its business.

Safe Lifting solutions

An advanced new Hyosung manufacturing plant supplying critical components for India's electrical power distribution grid is using Konecranes lifting technology to help ensure outstanding safety, efficiency and reliability.

Industrial Tyres from BKT

BKT has recently introduced a whole range of tyres for industrial applications. The Liftmax LM 81 has been specifically designed for forklift trucks. This new tyre?s key quality is durability.

My vision is to have a manufacturing arrangement in place to build our dredges for the local market

This is an ongoing process. We first entered the Indian market about 10 years ago with some of our smaller dredges. In fact, I was in contact with one of our customers working at Visakhapatnam who sent a recommendation that they are satisfied with their DSC dredge which had completed 50,000 hours nonstop.

Terex MPS Launches Modular Recycling Jaw Crusher

Terex MPS did the global launch of its new modular recycling jaw the MJ400R and also the TSV6203 screen. The MJ400R is a great addition to the modular product portfolio currently in existence. The key to this product is the industry leading access built into the design of this new modular jaw.

Liebherr cranes at the world?s largest tennis stadium

The Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York is the largest tennis stadium in the world and the venue for the US Open.

Towering the Demand Curve

What lifting capacity range of TCs will dominate the demand for free standing, external and internal climbing configurations? Say Malik ?The 5-6T capacity TCs will remain as the most dominate category.

ILC buys Grove cranes

Integrated Logistics Company (ILC), based in Kuwait purchased 10 Grove GMK4100L cranes to expand the company?s expansive fleet of over 500 cranes

Liebherr plans to launch the next model for Indian market

The major demand in India is for the real estate sector, so, 5-tonne capacity cranes are the main demand for this sector. The demand for higher capacity cranes can increase in future gradually but still the 5-tonne capacity crane may have a major demand for real estate sector.

DesignED to Rule

Konecranes launches New Overhead Crane

The new CXT?UNO crane combines a strong range of features based on a simpler set of components and technical solutions compared to existing CXT? products.

Our products have features that directly boost productivity to the customer.

The LeeBoy 523 is the result of intensive first-hand dialogue with customers and other stakeholders, to not only enhance productivity and operational efficiency, but also deliver a product that surpasses customer expectations. The findings from the customer dialogues enabled us to focus strongly on meeting three key expectations shared by the customer a reliable and rugged product, effective Post Sales Care (PSC) and lower running and maintenance costs. These have been kept in mind at all stages

Nordberg NP15 impact crusher

A steeper feed angle increases efficiency, a smart liner design reduces the need for different parts and several patented Metso innovations make maintenance safe.Metso is introducing the new Nordberg NP15 impact crusher, the latest addition to a field-proven range of NP Series machines. Designed for increased safety and performance, the NP15 impact crusher is the right choice for secondary and tertiary applications. ?Performance, profitability and maintenance of the crushing plants are at th

Potain Tower Cranes at Work on Bridge in Turkey

Two Potain tower cranes are building a 610-m-long cable-stayed bridge in southeast Turkey.The two MC 235 Bs are working ten hours a day at the 30-month project, which will create a vital connection across the Ataturk Dam Reservoir on the Euphrates River. The 10 T capacity MC 235 Bs were supplied to main contactor Gulsan Co by Potainvs Turkish dealer Tekno Vint, which is the largest tower crane operator in Turkey. Sinan Tnreyen, Group Director at Tekno Vint, says the Potain cranes are ideal f

Bulk material handling and processing solutions

Bevcon Wayors offers new generation innovative conveying systems for bulk material handling and processing solutions for core industries like power, steel, cement mining and minerals.

Increased production capabilities

Terex Minerals Processing Systems (MPS) has launched the new MC1300 Cone Module in response to customer feedback, increasing the application and production capabilities of its existing modular product range.

In search of a strong foundation

Absence of big ticket projects such as greenfield power and steel plant projects, crashed out rental rates and surplus of idling equipment, and the cash flow crisis - the overall scenario of the foundation equipment market from the micro point of view seems to be grim, even though from the macro point of view few metro projects seem to have given a bit of relief to the industry.

The Liebherr foundation equipment performs excellently

The Liebherr foundation equipment is known for their robust steel structure which delivers unmatched strength and quality. Features like PDE, PDR and LiDAT gives us an edge over the competition, says Ghananeel Molankar, Sales Manager, Liebherr India.

We focus on professional and timely service to tower cranes

We offer 10 T to 50 T level jib and luffing jib tower cranes from SYM China, 5 T to 20 T level jib, and luffing jib tower cranes from Top Sky, China, and GJJ, the biggest brand of China passenger hoist and construction platforms.

We have standardised the LiDAT system in our crawler cranes

Based on state-of-the-art technology, LiDAT provides information on the location and operation of your machines, enabling their efficient management, optimal operation scheduling and remote supervision

Gangnam Style

Putzmeister provides efficient concrete pumping for the construction of the Lotte World Tower in Seoul, South Korea.The Lotte World Tower, a building made of steel, glass and concrete 123 floors from the ground floor up.

Sustainable products

SSAB plans to strengthen its position as a leading producer of high-strength steels, while developing the markets in North and Latin America and Asia through advanced offerings based on their cutting-edge expertise. SSAB's advanced high-strength steels provide stronger, lighter, and more durable solutions. This leads to a better total economy, reduced environmental impact and longer product lifespan.

It is our product quality that has won our customers' faith and trust

We are increasing our investment in India and our phase-II expansion is already on. We strive to give inter?national quality to our customers at the best possible price by absorbing additional cost to the extent possible,? says Michael Schmid Lindenmayer, Managing Director, Putzmeister Concrete Machines. 0 - - 24677 14 251 2012-02-15 00:00:00.000 Equipment India Besides our technology quality, customer focus is the USP for our success Anand Sundaresan, Managing Director, Schwing Stetter India.

?Neither our customers nor our competition can deny the contribution made by Schwing Stetter India in the last 12 years to make the concreting equipment economical and affordable; and thereby substantially increasing the usage of these equipment," says Anand Sundaresan, Managing Director, Schwing Stetter India. In a chat with Equipment India, Sundaresan elaborates on the CE market trends and what has made the company a leading player in the concreting equipment segment. Excerpts from the interview.

How do you rate the overall performance of the CE industry and how is Schwing Stetter placed to meet the surging demands for advanced products and services in this evolving scenario?
In the last two decades, the construction equipment industry has made enormous progress and has grown both in size as well as diversity. Liberalisation, government focus on infrastructure developments and also special concessions given by the government on imports of equipment for infrastructure projects, have all helped the construction industry. It was also necessecary because most of these projects were time-bound and the penalties for delay in completion were very heavy. This gave a boost to the construction equipment industry and helped it grow more than 15-20 per cent year on year.

In addition to this, it also attracted many construction equipment manufacturers to set up shop in India either by way of joint ventures, license agreements or a hundred per cent subsidiary. Schwing Stetter India is one such com?pany to set up production facility, approximately 12 years ago, to take advantage of the growing market in India. Schwing Stetter India is a focused long-term player in the concreting segment and is here to stay for a long time.

With a view to participate in the growth and deve?lopment of our country and to participate in the huge market potential, Schwing Stetter India has been continuously increasing its production capacities, after sales network, value-added services etc, besides expanding its product range as per the needs of customers. Schwing Stetter India keeps close contact with customers, and with the valuable inputs received from them, has been intro?ducing various new products in the market. The recently concluded Excon 2011 was an excellent oppor?tunity to meet our existing and new customers and show?case our new products; we launched 19 new products.

How does Schwing Stetter look at ending this fiscal? What sort of topline growth are you looking at in the next five years and where do you see the growth coming from?
There has been a sudden slowdown in the second half of 2011 due to various reasons including high inflation and interest costs. Therefore, the topline growth this fina?ncial year will not be as high as we had originally anti?cipated. However, there will be a growth of about 20 per cent from the previous fiscal year 2010. We expect that this is a temporary setback and anticipate an year-on-year gro?wth of between 20 and 25 per cent in the next five years.

What is your take on some of the major issues the industry faces in today?s context?
Many of the factors have definitely affected the perfor?mance of construction equipment industry. This includes Schwing Stetter. High cost of funding has resulted in lower off-take of equipment, besides increasing input costs. The devaluation of the currency by over 20 per cent has a direct effect of over 7-8 per cent on the material cost since on an average, we always have 35-40 per cent import contents in our products.

Has competition become a major drive for the betterment of industry practices in terms of services provided by OEMs?
All construction equipment are highly service- oriented. Therefore, the customers are looking for more value-added services. In order to survive in this market, improved after-sales services and value-added services are a must. Healthy competition is most welcome. However, we find that sometimes, new entrants compromise too much to gain entry by selling even at below material cost levels, which is not very healthy for the industry.

What are the initiatives by Schwing Stetter towards more affordable and application-oriented product lines?
Cost reduction is a key factor towards which we conti?nuously work, without compromising on the quality of the components in our products. We have many examples where the cost of the equipment manufactured by us today are much lower than it used to cost ten years ago, but with better technology and better service package. This has made our equipment more affordable and has substantially increased our customer base.

Neither our customers nor our competition can deny the contribution made by Schwing Stetter India in the last 12 years, to make the concreting equipment econo?mical and affordable and thereby substantially increase the usage of the equipment.

How do you look at the threat of imports from LCC? What is your take on an initiative for a third-party certification system for import of equipment?
As I said earlier, the construction equipment is highly service-oriented equipment. Unless and until proper after sales service and spare parts back up is available, they cannot be sustained in India on a long-term basis, even though the initial purchase cost of this equipment may be lower.

Secondly, we have also seen that the equipment which come from the low-cost countries, often use inferior qua?lity of components. Therefore, the performance and dura?bility of such products are questionable.

How are exports doing for Schwing Stetter?
Schwing Stetter India was predominantly selling its products only within India and a few neighbouring coun?tries like Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, too. How?ever, Schwing Stetter India will shortly be supplying equipment to the East Asian countries, which will increase export revenue in the years to come.

Schwing Stetter has registered an enviable growth and to what do you attribute the success?
Besides our technology and focus on quality, our customer focus is the USP for our success. Schwing Stetter has been very lucky to have a committed and dedicated team of employees at all levels who do not compromise on the company?s core values.

Tell us about the impact of the stringent emission norms on OEMs.
The emission norms as per the international standards are bound to come in and every OEM has to be prepared for this. I do not personally look at it as a big threat.

Any more capex on the anvil?
Schwing Stetter India will keep investing on capacity expansion, branch offices, service depots, training centres, etc, as and when necessary. In 2011, we added six branch offices and six service depots. We are also in the process of expanding our production facility and a new factory is under construction. The total outlay between 2011 and 2012 is Rs 80 crore.

Raex Solid Steel

Thanks to Raex wear-resistant steel, customers can make products that are significantly lighter and have better abrasion resistant properties than traditional structures. The Raex steels of Ruukki have been made for the most demanding of conditions, where steel structures are exposed to high abrasive wear and surface pressure.

Liebherr is investing in skilled personnel and adequate warehousing

Our prime focus is on R9100 which is a 100-tonne class excavator which we will launch here in 2012. For large mining excavators from 26-42 cu m, we will be waiting for a perfect opportunity to launch in India, says Koenig Holger, Director, Liebherr India. 1 - - 23450 14 162 2012-01-01 00:00:00.000 Equipment India We see huge potential for tower crane business We are not only improving the productivity efficiency and effectiveness of the tower crane domain, but also improving the safety aspect on a human angle," says Rajesh Sharma, Vice President, Marketing, Escorts, in an exclusive chat with Equipment India. Excerpts from the interview.

How do you look at the performance of the Indian construction equipment market in 2011?
Definitely, 2011 is a growth year if you compare it with the sales in 2010. In 2010, the industry size all put together was about Rs 16,500 crore and in 2011 it is about Rs 18,500 crore. In that way growth has happened. Now the growth will not be seen for all kinds of equipment. Equipment market is a derived market. It depends on the activity. If there is a particular kind of activity which suits particular kind of equipment then that equipment will sell more in that year. So I would say that the growth rate has been in the range of 10-25 per cent across the equipment spectrum.

How did Escorts perform in 2011?
Our fiscal is from October to September, during which, we have grown by 41 per cent. The growth has been across the product spectrum. If look at it all the num?bers have grown and growth has been achieved holistically. If take individually, compactors segment has remained stagnant and very limited growth has happened because road activity was slow. All the rem?aining segments have grown beautifully.

Could you describe the partnership with Linden Comansa?
This partnership is an year old now. Last year, we had signed exclusive distribution agreement with them for Indian market. They are the mentors for tower cranes and our strength of distribution and developing skills in the market matched quite well.

What made you to venture into tower cranes?
In terms of growth opportunity we see a huge potential for tower crane business both in the real estate segment as well as industrial infrastructure. Real estate inve?stment is $16 billion which we think will go up to $24 billion by 2015. And industrial infrastructure is largely on the power side. A lot of activity will happen on nuclear power plant and hydel plant and these kinds of cranes are required. The usual small cranes cannot do the job. So believing this and looking at what happened across the world we thought there was huge potential for this and is why we entered tower crane business.

We are partners with Linden Comansa because they are the most technologically innovative company around. There was a lot of gap between what is available in India and what the world was using. Currently, the use of tower cranes is much lower and much basic in terms of technology. Flat top is what the world is getting towards so this was the right product to get into.

You said this partnership is not just for business sake but for solution providing. Kindly explain.
As a responsible supplier who has been known to be a pioneer in some field or other, it is our responsibility that we always try to push technology datum enveloped in the industry towards upward. This is one step towards that direction. We are not only improving the productivity efficiency and effecti?veness of the tower crane domain, but also improving the safety aspect on a human angle.

What kind of business are you looking at in the coming years?
We have already taken sizeable chunk of high-end market in the very first year. But the numbers have been really low like the size of high end market is small. By 2015 we want to sell about 200 machines. Construction equipment industry in the last ten years has been doubling itself every fourth year. Even if you see 250 numbers doubling to 500-600 numbers and we are aspiring for 200 numbers is not out of sync.

What is the advantage of these cranes as far as investment is concerned?
It is a product which has a very long life of 30-35 years which is exceptional in the construction equipment, so you can amo?rtise your investment over a longer period of years. The kind of rental market for tower cranes hardly exists in the country. But, if other assets get about 4 per cent a month, this will get 6 per cent rental a month in the market. Return on investment for a small hirer who is buying this equip?ment also makes it an economic case.

What are your plans to take this initiative forward in the coming years?
As far as the Escorts-Komansa tie-up is concerned, we need to focus more on communicating the technological adva?ntage and translating the equipment advantage into real perfo?rmance. That will happen by training people. That is why I declared that from December onwards we will be having a new training vertical in our school in Bengaluru which will be focussing only on tower cranes. Other products are happening but the new verticals will be open for tower cranes where we will be training people for operation maintenance and the optimum utilisation of the asset which is very important. We have already sent people for training and they have been trained by them and these are the people who will train them further.

How important is trained manpower?
We have emphasis on training. It is not only done for leveraging the marketing but also helping the industry and the country. Every business runs on what you are doing for the customer. If you are distributing well and you are having trained manpower in the country you have done great service to the customer. Equipment hardware is very easy to make. These two aspects are very important.

How do you see the competition in tower cranes?
There are already 12 players for tower cranes. But most of them are competing for the lower segment of the market. To be a player of a high segment, you need technological depth which they do not have. They have seen a Chinese crane and they made it and are selling in India. That is not going to do much favour in the long term. In the long term you need technological depth and innovativeness in terms of creating a shift from product selling to solution selling. This is entirely about solution selling.

How is the rental market for these cranes?
Hiring segment in the country is very decentralised and fragmented. Only two companies of large size are operating in India but they are not very effective. We have large populous of customers who are buying one or two equipment and are working in the close proximity and locality. They are not pan-India players. So Indian hiring industries are not organised as what we see in Europe and the US. When you have such a scenario people tend to invest in those
assets which are not high in value. Tower crane hiring will take some time to come around.

The high initial cost and then it is giving returns for 30 years and they are not mobile equipment. So these small hiring companies may no tend to get into it immediately. But as the time comes it will increase more and more. They buy assets depending upon what is demanded by the market.

What are your plans for 2012 and beyond?
Last year we achieved about 40 per cent growth and this year we are aiming at bettering that. We are very hopeful that we will be able to do that. We have a lot of new products in our armour both on the manufacturing and training site and I am sure we will be able to do that.

Are you planning to venture into other equipment segments?
We have a lot of opportunity in the verticals what we operate in. In crane side we almost have everything. On road construction side we only have compaction equipment and now we have added motor graders. There are many more we can add in that segment. Similarly moving north side we have backhoe loader. There are many products where we are not there and we can get into that later.

The Anupam-Alfa Cranes

Anupam Industries, in association with the leading European tower crane manufacturing company Alfa, part of the Finalfa group, Italy, provides world- class tower cranes apart from its own range of gantry cranes.

SSAB Toolox at Steinexpo

With its Toolox line of products, SSAB was represented at the stand of Bergauer Regene?rierung GmbH. The productpresented by the manufacturer Ferro Umformtechnik, known as HR Tube? consists of pipeline elements of Toolox steel for heavy duty use involving frictional materials and high heat loads.

Metso C120 Jaw Crusher

Metso recently intro?duced the Metso C120 jaw crusher, the 13th member of the field-proven C-series range of crushers. Metso?s C120 combines uncompro?mising reliability, crushing effi?ciency and versatility in both stationary and mobile applica?tions with safety and ease of use.

New Smarton Process Crane

Konecranes Smarton? Crane now comes with the revolutionary Truview? remote monitoring services, a safer and maintenance-friendly feature.Condition monitoring, remote moni?toring service, wizard assisted start-up all standard features in the new Smarton process crane take safety and reliability to a new level

Knuckle Boom Cranes: The Integrated Solution

While over 90 per cent of the lift-and-carry market is dominated by knuckle boom cranes the world over, in India pick-and-carry (P&C) cranes dominate, with 95 per cent sales.

Liebherr is moving towards fuel-efficient technology products

Liebherr offers a wide range of deep foundation machinery: rotary drilling rigs (LB), piling and drilling rigs (LRB), piling rigs with fixed and swinging leader (LRH), and duty cycle crawler cra?nes (HS).

Structural Steel Work Equipment

Though RCC and pre-stressed concrete have become the unanimous rulers of the construction world, steel structures are equally vital.