For huge building construction projects, tower cranes are used rather frequently. These machinery are rather required for heavy lifting as well as placing materials and equipment. Tower cranes offer a different configuration which provides a lot of advantages over more conventional cranes. These benefits comprise: quiet electrical operation, higher vertical lift, increased capacities, and reduced space requirements.
Hammerhead Crane
A hammerhead crane is a different design which is most often associated with a tower crane. In this situation, a long horizontal jib is attached to a vertical tower. One end of the jib acts as a counterweight and the other end of the jib extends horizontally over the worksite. There is a trolley on the hammerhead crane. This trolley holds the lifting cable and could travel along the length of the jib. The tower crane is capable of operating anywhere in the jib's radius.
Self-Erecting Tower Cranes
A self-erecting crane is capable of completely assembling itself at the jobsite without any assistance from another crane. This provides a huge benefit in setup time and greatly saves time in equipment expenses too. Self-erecting cranes are normally remote-controlled from the ground, although there are some models that have an operator cab built onto the jib.
Self-erecting cranes are generally freestanding and this allows them the opportunity to be able to be moved around. There are several models that have a telescoping tower which enables the crane to work at multiple heights without the need to reconfigure the tower.
Luffing Jib Tower Crane
Most urban work environments do not have enough clearance or space for the jib to freely rotate without existing buildings blocking its movement. A luffing jib tower crane is great for such tight areas. Nearly all tower cranes have a fixed horizontal jib. The operator can raise or lower a luffing jib in order to allow the crane to swing in a reduced radius.