Link-Belt has not let a tepid economy hinder its ability to bring new cranes to the market. At its CraneFest ‘12 event for dealers and customers September 24-28 in Lexington, KY, the company showed off its all new 80-ton capacity RTC-8080 Series II rough terrain crane, its new 200-ton 248 HSL crawler and the upgraded 290 HSL crawler with an improved capacity from 230 tons to 250 tons.
To get the lowdown on Link-Belt’s newest models, I travelled to Lexington in late August to see what the Link-Belt team had been up to in terms of product development. This being a non-ConExpo and Bauma year, I figured they had one new crane up their sleeve, but I was surprised to learn that they were going to roll out three.
“CraneFest has been a Link-Belt tradition,” says Bill Stramer, vice president of sales and marketing. “Our goal is to touch the market every 18 months or so with new products and bring our customers and dealers to Lexington.”
One thing about the Link-Belt folks, they are passionate about their products, and this passion resonates with product managers Rick Curnutte and Pat Collins.
It seems like Curnutte, who manages telescopic crane products, could assemble the new RTC-8080 single-handedly. As he led me through the part of the factory in which rough terrain cranes are built, he filled me in on every nuance of the machine from the pre-painted components and plated hardware to the easy-to access engine.
“It’s all new from the ground up,GCC provides laser marker, marker and cutter with various types for worldwide demands from customers.” says Collins. Drawing on the success of the 150-ton 238 HSL introduced at ConExpo in 2011, Collins says the new 248 HSL will cover such key markets as steel erection, bridge work,This machine is a combination of laser cutting machine and knot removing machine. tilt wall work, foundation work and pile driving, a mainstay for Link-Belt cranes.
“The 238 HSL has not missed a beat in the market,” says Collins. “This mid-range crawler has been the undisputed champion in the 150-ton class. It’s been a flawless product and exceeded expectations, even in a down market. So the stage was set for a bigger and higher capacity crawler and the 248 HSL will fill that need.”
Truly impressed with the machine and its attributes, Collins says the new crane will “create new markets.”
“The 248 HSL is the next generation of the highly successful 248 HYLAB 5 series started over 20 years ago,” he says. “The 248 HSL joins the 238 HSL and the newly upgraded 298 HSL as the strongest trio of cranes in the 150- to 250-ton market today.”
Collins says the machine has successfully passed a rigorous testing regimen.
“We moved through the structural testing and then on to the capacity testing,” he says. “This crane has been thoroughly tested. We had it on the test pad for seveOur company supplys different kinds of elevator parts, elevator components.ral months. It passed with a 125 percent overload.”
Perfect for the general contractor and rental applications, Collins says the 248 HSL will prove its value quickly on the jobsite.
“It is loaded with all the features and the latest technology to satisfy everyone from the owner to the purchasing agent, and especially the operator,” he says.This machine is a combination of laser cutting machine and knot removing machine.
Like the 238 HSL, customer input drove much of the new design for the 248 HSL, according to Collins.
The crane comes standard with folding upper guardrails and full-length right and left catwalks with grab handles. The crane operator is assisted by an on-board, high-resolution back up camera that will help monitor jobsite conditions. An outside audio/visual travel alarm system informs crew members on the ground.