Five OEMs, one rental fleet: Maxim’s ConExpo 2026 handovers span crawlers, all-terrains and truck cranes
Maxim Crane Works used ConExpo-Con/Agg 2026 in Las Vegas to sign for new cranes from five manufacturers, including the first Grove GMK8700 all-terrain and a Liebherr LR 1400.1 SX crawler.
Machines on five OEM stands
Rather than take a stand of its own, the US rental company placed equipment across the booths of its manufacturing partners. Kobelco showed a CK1100 crawler in Maxim colours; Liebherr displayed an LR1400 crawler and an LTM 1055-3.3 all-terrain; Link-Belt exhibited a prototype of its 248 crawler; Manitowoc gave the Grove GMK8700 all-terrain its world premiere; and Tadano showed a CC2400 crawler alongside a TC650 truck crane.
Key handovers on the show floor
Several of those machines changed hands during the week. Maxim took part in sign-over ceremonies with Kobelco for new crawler additions, with Liebherr’s Nenzing and Ehingen plants for the LR 1400.1 SX crawler and the LTM 1055-3.3, and with Link-Belt for the next generation of 248 HSL crawlers. Manitowoc handed over the first GMK8700 built. Tadano’s handover covers crawler and truck crane additions tied to Maxim’s 2026–2027 all-terrain maintenance programme.
The spread is deliberate. Buying across manufacturers and crane classes gives the rental company overlapping capacity bands it can move between its branches, which matters when a single customer’s job may need a taxi-crane one week and a heavy crawler the next.
“These growth investments reflect our long-term view of the market and our commitment to ensuring the right crane is in the right place at the right time for our customers. We will continue to expand our fleet with the latest technology, delivering a modern, dependable lineup our customers can rely on. ConExpo provides an important opportunity to strengthen our OEM partnerships while reinforcing our focus on safety and fleet performance.”
— Paul McDonnell, Chief Executive Officer, Maxim Crane Works
What the mix says
Read together, the list is a snapshot of where a large US rental fleet is putting its money in 2026: telescopic and lattice crawlers for industrial and infrastructure work, mid-size all-terrains such as the LTM 1055-3.3 for taxi-crane duty out of the branches, and one very large all-terrain in the GMK8700 for the top of the range. The Tadano handover being tied to a two-year all-terrain maintenance programme also points to fleet availability, not just headline capacity, being part of the calculation.
Feeding a coast-to-coast network
Maxim operates from more than 50 locations in the United States, each able to supply project management, rigging, engineering and transport alongside bare or operated and maintained rentals. The company positions the ConExpo purchases as a continuation of the fleet renewal it has been running for several years, aimed at industrial, infrastructure and commercial building work.
Source: Maxim Crane Works — Photos: Maxim Crane Works