Vancouver USA port purchases second heavy-lift mobile crane

Vancouver USA port purchases second heavy-lift mobile crane The Washington state Port of Vancouver has signed a contract with Austrian crane manufacturer Liebherr to purchase a second mobile harbor crane, Executive Director Larry Paulson said in a release Monday.
   The Liebherr LHM 500S crane, with a tower height of 116.5 feet and a boom length of 174 feet, is capable of hoisting 140 metric tons up to 60-foot outreach and 100 metric tons at 100-foot outreach.
   The crane is also compatible with biodiesel fuel, meeting a port policy requirement for alternative fuel.

The Port of Vancouver's first LHM500S mobile crane. (Photo: Port of Vancouver USA)

   The crane will leave Germany in January en route to the port. It is expected to be in place and fully operational by the end of the first quarter.
   The Vancouver USA port has experienced great success in the handling of heavy-lift cargo, such as components for power generating wind turbines, since purchasing its first LHM500S in 2006 for $3.2 million.
   'Thanks to having the first crane, longshore crews working at the Port of Vancouver in 2007 put in 72,000 work hours on wind energy components alone, and the International Longshore & Warehouse Union local hired 26 new full-time longshore workers due to the wind energy cargo increase,' said port Operations Manager Mike Schiller.
   Port officials cited a projected increase in wind energy cargo and project cargo over the next year and the long term in ordering the second crane.
   'We also expect to be loading more wind energy cargo to rail, which means we need another heavy-lift crane to efficiently move cargo across the port,' Paulson said. 'In other words, we'll be able simultaneously unload vessels with one crane while loading cargo to trucks or railcars. Additionally, some wind components require two cranes in order to eliminate the possibility of damage. These heavy capacity cranes can also safely handle other large, heavy components without turning the vessel — an important cost saving feature.'
   Port officials also said they expect to use portions of the port's Alcoa/Evergreen property for storage of the wind energy components, which means that at times, a second crane will be needed at that location to place the components that come off a vessel into storage before they're due to be delivered to the job site.