Photo courtesy of Grove

Pater’s newest Grove GMK5150XL all-terrain crane on site in the village of Tienhoven, the Netherlands.

Dutch crane rental and transport company, Kraanverhuur T. Pater, has replaced its older five-axle Grove crane with a newer, stronger option, and has enjoyed immediate returns. The company upgraded to the higher capacity GMK5150XL all-terrain crane.

The company opted for a stronger five-axle all-terrain crane because its customers in the construction sector are increasingly looking to lift bigger loads. A lot of this is driven by the growing preference for prefabricated construction, where typical loads can weigh from 16.5 to 22 tons. The company selected its Grove GMK5150XL after visiting the Manitowoc factory in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, and seeing the manufacturing process and testing of this impressive crane.

"We were so happy with our reliable GMK5095, and it gave us nine years of great service. But we wanted to go bigger and do more, so we opted for the GMK5150XL. We have not been disappointed; in just three months, we can already see the difference. It's easy to operate, runs smoothly, and already shows a strong return on investment for us. The crane has an impressive load chart and an enormous reach with its 68.7 m main boom. On top of that, it's capable of handling some really heavy loads," said Harry Pater, owner of Kraanverhuur T. Pater.

Photo courtesy of Grove

One of the first projects for the GMK5150XL was in the village of Tienhoven, where it lifted concrete floor panels for a community building and sports hall. It placed a number of the 6.6 ton panels at a radius of 52.5 ft. and lifted them from a very narrow footprint, due to the MAXbase variable outrigger positioning system. The lifts were well within the crane's capacity and the project wrapped up efficiently within a single day.

Erik Baas, Manitowoc's local sales manager for mobile cranes in the Netherlands, saw the crane in action.

"The GMK5150XL on the project in Tienhoven worked solidly and effectively over 10 hours; it never missed a beat. The crane really proved itself, especially its versatility and strength that comes from having nearly 31 t of counterweight on board," he said.

Photo courtesy of Grove

For the lifting work, the GMK5150XL was fitted with 34 tons of counterweight and utilized with Grove's optional MAXbase feature. It traveled to the site with 11.2 tons on the crane, which equates to 13.2 tons per axle. An additional 22.8 tons was loaded onto a three-axle trailer that the crane towed behind itself. This heavyweight configuration is road legal in the Netherlands, offering huge opportunities for local crane owners.

With Grove's plentiful counterweight options, it makes for a compelling choice for owners.

Kraanverhuur T. Pater is a family-owned crane rental and transport company with headquarters in ‘t Harde, the Netherlands, and branches in Amersfoort and Almere. The company was founded in 1982 by Theo Pater, specializing in lifting work for the industrial, building, and construction segments. Today, Theo's son Harry Pater owns and runs the company.

For more information, visit www.manitowoc.com.

This story also appears on Crane Equipment Guide.

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