30
ACT
NOVEMBER 2013
PRODUCT FOCUS
TOWER CRANES
I
f there is one word that sums-up the
market for tower cranes in North
America, it’s “slow.”
“We at Linden Comansa America see
a slow increase in activity in the North
American market,” says Bill Carbeau,
vice president of business development
for Linden Comansa America. “Rental
utilization is increasing and rental rates
seem to be finally climbing. This is always
a precursor to tower crane sales.”
Over at Manitowoc, a similar story plays
out.
“In 2013, we have seen slow, steady
growth,” says Mike Heacock, Manitowoc’s
vice president of sales for tower cranes,
North America. “All indications show us
this growth will continue into 2014, and as
rental fleets become more highly utilized,
we anticipate increased sales.”
But up in Canada, where Ontario-based
Oxford Builders Supplies resides, Mike
Demelo, vice president of equipment sales
for the company, says the market has been
active overall.
“The market was busy January through
April; it has slowed down since then,
but not by much,” Demelo says. “There
The tower crane market
in the U.S. isn’t as
active as it is in Canada.
Lindsey Anderson
reports on the
respective markets.
is a good mix of industrial, commercial
and residential projects. All sectors are
relatively strong and keeping the tower
crane market steady. It softened up this
past year due to slower commercial
markets but, still, [we are experiencing]
good utilization of fleet.”
This Liebherr HCL355 was erected on
seven HC500 tower sections.
The climb on the Liebherr
HCL355 consisted of adding
two HC500 towers, installing
tie-ins at level nine of the
building, and then adding
one more HC500 tower,
according to Oxford Builders
Supplies.
Market still a bit
A Linden Comansa flat-top
tower crane at work.
