Santa Clara, California
Four Liebherr LR 1300 crawler cranes are being used to erect the steel structure of the new Santa Clara Stadium in California, the future home ground of the San Francisco 49ers.

Californian-headquartered Bigge Crane and Rigging provided the crawlers. Onsite they’re erecting 14,000 pieces of steel, using main booms of 154ft and a luffing jib of 164 ft. The stadium is due for completion in time for the 2014 NFL football season.

Decatur, Alabama
Solley Crane Service, in Decatur, AL, US used a 600t Terex AC 500-2 crane to lift a 140USt (127t), press base in a railway yard in Cullman for an auto parts manufacturer. Operators moved the AC 500-2 crane and equipment in six truckloads.

The load was a large press piece with dimensions of 14 x 15 x 30ft (4.3 x 9.1 x 4.6m). "The press base was crated and had lifting eyes, so it was a straight forward rigging and lift job," said Ray Solley, president of Solley Crane Service. "For a job that size, we would use two of our 250USton (226t) cranes and do a tandem lift." The firm moved the object from the rail car and onto the transporter, so the piece could travel the final 6mi to its destination.

Caledon, Ontario, Canada
MJR Contractors used a Manitowoc 12000-1 crawler for concrete work at Tullamore Pumping Station and Reservoir in Caledon, Ontario. It worked alongside a Manitowoc 8500 crawler, and the pair of cranes were sold by Ontario dealer, Strongco. At the Caledon project, cranes set forms and poured concrete, placing large pipes in the ground and assembling concrete forms.

Chicago, Illinois
A Grove GMK6300L rough terrain used its extra long boom to assemble a 20t Potain MD 485 B tower crane in downtown Chicago, Illinois. Onsite the GMK6300L lifted mast and jib sections weighing between 8,500lb (3.9t) and 9,000lb (4t). Then it poured concrete, placed formwork, and lifted structural steel among other job site services. Paul Treacy, superintendent for McHugh, said Chicago construction regulations mandate that the crane couldn’t be on the street during rush hour. Treacy said, "We knew that with the GMK6300L, we could easily move and set up the crane at the job site without breaching traffic laws. A key reason for this is the exceptionally long boom on the GMK6300L, which meant for rigging the Potain we didn’t need a jib. For other cranes to get similar reach, you have to swing the jib in and set up the crane again, which costs considerable amounts of time."