When the load chart does not fit the job: how Manitowoc adapts Potain tower cranes
Manitowoc’s Lift Solutions team engineers Potain tower cranes beyond their catalogue configurations — bespoke components, project-specific load charts and, in one French shipyard, a rail-mounted gantry with its own lift for the operator.
Standard cranes, non-standard jobs
Energy, large-scale infrastructure and shipyard work increasingly present crane owners with sites that do not match any page of a standard load chart: harsher environments, tighter footprints and compressed programmes. Manitowoc’s argument is that utilisation, not purchase price, is where those projects are won or lost — a crane that can be reconfigured for an awkward job earns its keep across more of the year.
Lift Solutions, introduced more than a decade ago, exists to make that reconfiguration formal engineering rather than site improvisation. The team works with Potain owners before a crane arrives, combining design work, field experience and product support to adapt models for specific applications.
What the work involves
In practice the output can be a tailored component, a defined lift procedure, a modified crane configuration or a project-specific load chart. The intention is not to substitute for standard equipment but to widen what an existing machine can safely take on.
The clearest illustration is a French shipyard, where Lift Solutions installed a Potain tower crane on a special gantry for vessel construction and maintenance. The gantry carries a staircase and a lift for the operator, and travels on rails under the control of the crane’s own CCS (Crane Control System), allowing the machine to move between dry docks with a load still on the hook. The package also included lighting, a camera system, VHF radio communications and a customised seat — details that matter when an operator is in the cab for a full shift.
Other referenced projects include work in Finland to enable greater work at height, and the refurbishment of the Gravagna viaduct in Italy.
Support as a lifecycle proposition
Manitowoc frames Lift Solutions as part of a longer relationship with the customer rather than a bolt-on at the point of sale, with involvement running from purchase through the working life of the crane.
“Customers are demanding more from every tower crane in their fleet. Working closely with them before a crane arrives on site is critical to the success of today’s complex jobsites — and that’s exactly the role of Manitowoc Lift Solutions. It allows constraints to be addressed early and ensures the machine is configured as the right solution for the job.”
— Bernard Ecabert, Lift Solutions manager for tower cranes, Manitowoc
Ecabert added that Manitowoc sees the delivery of a crane “as just the beginning of the relationship with our customers”, with the service intended to help owners extract value from equipment over its entire lifecycle.
Source: Manitowoc — Photos: Manitowoc
Service facts
- Service: Manitowoc Lift Solutions (tower cranes)
- Introduced: More than a decade ago
- Scope: Tailored components, lift procedures, modified configurations, project-specific load charts
- Sectors: Energy, large-scale infrastructure, shipyards
Example project
- Location: Shipyard, France
- Solution: Potain tower crane on rail-travelling gantry
- Features: Operator staircase and lift, CCS-controlled gantry travel, travel between dry docks with load on hook
- Extras: Lighting, camera system, VHF radio, customised seat