SELF-PROPELLED BOOMS
13
MAY-JUNE 2013
access
INTERNATIONAL
Moving on up
The inevitable hustle and
bustle around the Genie
stand was a given, but
there was plenty of food
for thought elsewhere at
the bauma showground
concerning the articulated
boom sector.
AI
reports
the width to under 2.5 m and the height,
at around 3 m, similar to the other Genie
Superbooms.
Scott Krieger, Terex AWP senior product
manager, booms and telehandlers, told
AI
that this will make it transportable without
a special permit in most US states and
countries, although there will be exceptions.
The design of the pivoting axles on the drive
chassis is what has allowed both the stability
of the machine at great heights – the spread
at full axle extension is 5 m - and its narrow
transport width. The X-design axles look
similar to those used on smaller machines
in the Genie line-up, but the geometry is
different, with the axles pointing inwards
when fully retracted, which helps reduce the
overall length.
Stiff competition
The SX-180 will cost around US$650000,
which is a lot, but less than an equivalent
height truck mount. “Customers believe they
can make money, absolutely”, says Mr Krieger,
“It is by a large margin, 20%, the world’s
largest self-propelled boom. We have a lot of
people standing in a line for the machine.”
The SX-180 on show in Munich was a
prototype but close to the final thing. Sales
will start in the second half of this year.
The SX-180 eclipses JLG’s two 150 ft booms,
the 1500SJ telescopic model and the veteran
150HAX.
JLG, hitherto the leader in the big boom
segment said earlier this year that it aimed
to maintain its ‘leadership’ in that segment.
And since bauma Karel Huijser, JLG general
manager and vice president EAME access
equipment, told
AI
that it will add another
superboom to its range.
“Later this year we will announce an
expansion to our Ultra Boom range. We will
unveil more details soon and expect to take
One of many applications
suitable for SX-180
The 180 ft working height Genie SX-180
reaches to the skies at bauma
T
he main attraction at bauma was the
launch of Terex AWP’s Genie SX-180,
and at 54.9 m (180 ft) you couldn’t
miss its presence in a showground littered
with booms of various descriptions.
“This is a technological leap; this is a real
advancement that the industry has not seen,”
said Ron DeFeo, Terex chairman and chief
executive officer. “The market is trending
towards big booms and these machines will
eat into the truck-mount market.”
By this he means that common truck
crane applications like wind turbine projects
will be real opportunities for big booms,
along with a range of other energy-related
work, commercial construction, industrial
construction and maintenance.
When asked if the SX-180 is the first in
a new series of superbooms, Mr Defeo was
hesitant to make a firm commitment, but
didn’t deny that it is a firm possibility.
UK-based Kimberly Group was among
the first buyers, confirming it had ordered
two of the machines. Kimberly chairman Ray
Ledger said they would be the first to enter
the European market, with delivery likely in
the third quarter of this year. Fellow UK rental
company Facelift Access was also a buyer at
bauma.
The machine, which is designed to be driven
at full height, shares the drive chassis first
used earlier this year on the ZX-135 but with
its own boom design, including a 3 m jib.The
boom uses 100000 psi steel rather than the
80000 psi material used on smaller machines.
The maximum horizontal reach of 24.4 m
(80 ft) stays at around that mark until a height
of about 35 m, and the platform has a capacity
of 340 kg (750 lb). Terex has managed to
keep the weight under the 25 tonne mark,
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