MASTS AND HOISTS
21
JULY-AUGUST 2013
ACCESS, LIFT & HANDLERS
“With high numbers of rental units tied up
for six to nine-month durations, forecasting
becomes easier and confidence increases,”
O’Shea says. “It’s still early in the recovery
cycle to expect new products on the market in
any significant way but manufacturers in North
America haven’t lost the appetite for innovation.”
In Canada, manufacturer Klimer was recently
busy on the Canadian Museum for Human Rights
project which presented a number of challenges.
The shape of the building was an obvious
challenge, but working in temperatures which
got down to negative 40 - 50 degrees was
another significant hurdle to overcome.
The KPM-8 was the main MCWP used
throughout the site, with a free-standing height
capability of 100 feet and travel speeds of 30
feet/minute. For work inside the structure and
other confined areas, the Klimerlite was being
used. The daily quantity of stone installed per
person was about 50 square feet with two to
four people on a platform at one time.
In Atlanta, Mastclimbers was called upon
to come up with a delicate yet sturdy plan
for Emory Health Care. Mastclimbers had to
come up with a plan to provide 100 percent
coverage, platforms capable of lifting significant
loads and platform configurations which would
provide multi-corner profiling. Approximately
45,000 square foot pieces of Portuguese marble
and granite were mechanically anchored to
Construction Masonry Unit on two new five story
buildings, linked by a two story bridge. In order
to install the mechanical support work which
was to hold the panels, the surveyors required to
set up their measuring equipment on continuous
platforms of significant length, and also required
to take accurate measurements between two or
three elevations separated by corners. Platforms
Mastclimbers LLC was called upon by
Emory Health Care to come up with a plan
to provide 100 percent coverage, platforms
capable of lifting significant loads and
platform configurations which would
provide multi-corner profiling.
lengths on a single mast were able to go out to
50-feet long.
“This type of project would not normally
be handled by MCWPs, but the weight of the
Portuguese marble and granite façade panels
was such that booms and scissors were not
suitable,” says Mike Pitt, owner of Mastclimbers.
“The platforms were required to take loads
between 6,000 and 8,000 pounds.”
At the peak of the project there were close
to 60 masons working on the platforms. Work
started in April 2012, and the project was
completed in November 2012.
Up in Montreal, Fraco supplied nine units of
its SEH Series for the construction of the new
University of Montreal Health Center (UMHC).
The UMCH represents an investment of $2.5
billion. Phase 2, which is mostly centered
on hospital activities, consists of a 20-story
building totaling some 2,884,728 square feet
and is expected to be completed in 2016. The
design and construction of the hospital was
transferred to Construction Santé Montréal
(CSM) companies Laing O’Rourke and OHL
Canada. The latter relies on the expertise of
local companies such as EBC Inc. and Magil
Construction Inc.
In December 2012, Fraco received from CSM
a firm order for seven construction hoists. In
June 2013, EBC Inc., which is responsible for
the construction of buildings, confirmed an
order for two additional units. In June 2013,
Fraco delivered its first units of SEH Series,
i.e. two single car construction hoists with a
payload capacity of 6,000 pounds traveling at
300 feet/minute. Delivery of five units should be
completed by August 2013, while those ordered
by EBC Inc. should be carried out in December
2013.
Modern mechanics
While the mast, hoist, transport platform and
related sectors are on the move, new products
are surfacing.
Fraco’s under-bridge unit (BR-1), Hydro-
Mobile’s Transport Platform and Scanclimber’s
SC8000 are all new market entrants.
Fraco’s BR-1 was designed as an alternative
to truck-mounted under-bridge access. The
BR-1 uses a wheeled chassis as opposed to a
truck chassis. The platform is 23 feet, 3 inches
long by 6 feet wide and has a capacity of 1,500
pounds. The platform has a vertical stroke of
12 feet, allowing it to be lowered under the
bridge, and can slew 180 degrees to position the
platform underneath the bridge superstructure.
Hydro-Mobile’s new Transport Platform (TP)
was derived from its F Series range, and the TP
is fully modular. With ability to lift 4,000 pounds
Stros, a Czech Republic-based manufacturer
has entered the North American market by
storm over the last few years.
“The personnel and material hoist business
is outstandingly good for us right now,
especially in New York (pictured here) and
Toronto,” says Ondrej Susa, Stros sales
manager.
and work in a number of configurations, it is a
highly flexible platform and that can adapt to
challenging conditions.
Scanclimber’s SC8000 mast climbing work
platform is based off its SC5000 and is designed
to carry out heavy-duty tasks at minimal cost.
Users can customize the platform due to its
modular design, and the unit uses components
from across the model range. The SC8000
climbs steplessly up the mast to a maximum
height of 984 feet using a heavy duty rack and
pinion system of high grade steel. The mast
is erected to the desired height by connecting
