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It can take just a few minutes of rain to turn a working construction site into a quagmire, with vehicles and plant stuck until it dries or the can be rescued.
Steel erectors Fitness Engineering Limited of Kent cannot afford down time and have found a way round the problem – a new, all-terrain Mercedes –Benz Unimog U500 with a 22 metre reach PM Crane.
Whilst only a small percentage of the work is classified as off road, it is the knowledge that the Unimog/PM crane package will get to the site, tackle the job effectively, and then get off sit on time that ensures peace of mind and minimum threat to profitability.
The radio-controlled PM Crane is powered directly from the Unimog’s Mercedes-Benz diesel engine via a Power Take-Off point, which allows an integral payload behind the cab to carry tools and equipment. The PM 30025SP crane, installed by Truck Hydraulics Ltd of East Yorkshire, has a lifting capacity of 3.75 tonnes at six metres: 1.35 tonnes at 14.4 metres: and with the fly jib 330kg at 22metres. The 2.5 tonne winch, working in conjunction with the fly jib, allows lifting or lowering loads in difficult access locations, and a powerful, front-mounted winch ensures that the Unimog is never stuck off-road.
With the PM Crane having a radio remote control from a distance up to 200 metres.
This allows the operator to be close by the load being lifted at all times from where he has perfect visibility for inch-perfect load alignment and placement. This also allows the operator to be the slinger/banksman, saving the cost of a dedicated person.
‘The short wheelbase Unimog is ideal for many of the working sites we attend,’ says Managing Director David Fitness. “We have been able to diversify the customer base so that we can access and work on residential driveways or, using the Unimog’s Central Tyre Inflation system to reduce tyre pressure, even in domestic gardens.
“We have also linked with a tree surgeon so that when he is asked to remove a large tree, for example by the side of a road or where overhanging is a risk; we can safely remove the bulk of the trunk with out causing any damage”
Fitness Engineering Limited was formed some 35 years ago and David took over the running of the business from his father in the mid 1990s. The current Unimog U500 replaces a second-hand Unimog U1700, brought after David recognised the need for a reliable, off-road solution that would power a crane, but at the same time offer on-road speeds and exceptional manoeuvrability.
“We cannot just stop because of the weather is not dry and sunny, or the ground conditions are not hard and perfect: we have the equipment and the expertise to operate almost anywhere that steel erection is required. This is just the beginning, as our aim is to progress in the future to a fleet of specialised vehicles for rough terrain lifting: whether it be a construction site or a domestic garden, we will have the solution,” he adds.
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