In 2008, We Energies began construction on a new air quality control system, scheduled to be completed in 2012. As the primary supplier of lift equipment, Dawes Rigging & Crane Rental, Inc. - a member of the ALL Erection & Crane Rental Corp. Family of Companies - was able to provide as many as 20 cranes at one time.
Dawes' cranes were on-site from the outset - rough terrain cranes from 65 to 130 USt and crawlers from 175- to 660-USt capacities, doing everything from steel erection to placing new ductwork and smokestack components.
Originally, project engineers handling the job wanted to hire a Manitowoc 888 crawler with a RINGER attachment to set the ductwork across a bluff on the shore of Lake Michigan, where the power plant is located. Adding a ringer attachment and pedestals to a crane distributes the load over a larger area and can increase the lifting capacity dramatically. But the cost and time delay can be dramatic, too. The large ringer attachment must be transported onto the jobsite, and a foundation must be built to support the ringer's pedestals.
Meeting on the We Energies site with the engineers, Dawes formulated a plan using its Manitowoc 18000 already on site. By adding a MAX-ER attachment and reconfiguring the boom, the customer could save hundreds of thousands of dollars in rental fees alone. The MAX-ER is a cost-effective way to increase the 18000's base capacity, eliminating the time and expense of transporting and setting up a larger crane - or, in this case, the 888 crane with a ringer. The engineers fortified the road along the work area to support the 18000, and everything worked as planned.
Dawes also came through when a 300-USt Manitowoc 2250 crawler with luffing jib had to be erected on the side of a bluff between two groups of major power lines coming into the facility. The crane had to be built down below the bluff and brought up the hill separately from the boom so as to avoid the power lines. The luffing jib was then pinned to the boom from an adjacent parking area.
Dawes crane experts were able to save We Energies nearly $1 million in crane rental fees by selecting the right cranes from ALL's fleet.
