Being amongst the largest pieces of equipment that are used in building projects, the skyline of any city will likely include at least a few tower cranes. Tower cranes are mainly used to lift heavy materials, including steel and concrete, and it is followed by tower crane rental services too. With the help of the tower cranes, large devices like torches, motors, and generators are also transported.

The lifting capacity of the tower cranes can be underestimated based on appearance since these cranes are slender compared to the high-rise buildings. How is it capable of lifting so massive amounts of weight? Along with the building, does the crane also become taller? The basic working principles of tower cranes, along with their functionality, will be discussed here in this article.

There are three main parts to the tower cranes, and they are the mast or tower, the base, and the slewing unit.

BASE: The main support of the crane is the base. To carry the complete weight, it is connected to a large concrete foundation.

MAST OR TOWER: The mast or the tower is the supporting structure that gives the crane its height as it is connected to the base. To give the crane its strength, the mast has a large triangulated lattice structure.

SLEWING UNIT: To allow the crane to rotate along its axis, the slewing unit consists of a gear and motor. The slewing unit consists of the following three parts in turn:

Jib or working arm: With the trolley that runs along its length to move the load in and out, the horizontal element carries the load.

Machinery arm: Holding the load-lifting motor with a shorter horizontal element. Electronic controls, concrete counterweights to keep the balance, cable drum, and electronic controls are also contained here.Operator’s cabin: The space in which the operator performs all the functions of the crane is this cabin.

Depending on the model and manufacturer, there are differences in the cranes, and a typical tower crane has the following specifications:

Maximum unsupported height: 265 feet or 80 meters is the specific height. If they are attached to the building since the building rises around the crane, it can reach taller grounds.

Maximum reach: 230 feet or 70 meters

Maximum lifting power: 19.8 tons or 18 metric tons

Counterweights: 20 tons or 16.3 metric tons

The crane will not be able to lift that much weight when the load is positioned at the end of the jib, as you need to note that the maximum load is 18 metrics tons. The more weight the crane can lift safely with the closer the load is located to the mast. To prevent over loading with the maximum load switch, to stay below 18 metric tons, and a maximum moment switch to safeguard the crane from the bending force of the load as the operator has two limit switches.

When tower crane rentals are used, weather monitoring in construction sites is important. The load and the structure can be destabilized with a strong gust of wind and can collapse. Project managers should avoid lifting operations with unfavorable weather, and they should constantly check the weather forecasts. The dangerous wind conditions that are not covered in the forecast, a weather monitoring system at the project sites can warn about the same.