Crawler Crane
The mobile crawler crane is specific crane made with either a telescopic boom or a lattice boom. These move upon the crawlers tracks. Because this crane is self-propelled, it can move around certain work sites without the need for a lot of set up. Due to their huge size and weight, crawler cranes are rather pricey and even hard to transport from one place to another. The crawler's tracks offer the machine stability and allow the crane to work without using outriggers, however, there are some models that do use outriggers. Also, the tracks provide the machine's movement.
Early Mobile Cranes
Originally, the very first mobile cranes were mounted to train cars and move along specially designed short rail lines. When the 20th century arrived, the crawler tractor changed and this brought the introduction of crawler tracks to the construction industry as well as the agricultural industry. Not long after, the crawler tracks were adopted by excavators and this further showcased the equipment's versatility. It was not long after before manufacturers of cranes decided that the crawler track market was a safe bet.
The Very First Crawler Crane
Around the 1920s, Northwest Engineering, a crane company in the USA, mounted its very first crane on crawler tracks. It described the new machine as a "locomotive crane, independent of tracks and moveable under its own power." By the middle part of the 1920s, crawler tracks had become the chosen means of traction for heavy crane uses.
The Speedcrane
The Moore Speedcrane, developed by Charles and Ray Moore of Chicago, Illinois was amongst the first attempts to copy the rails for cranes. Manufactured within Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Speedcrane was a wheel-mounted, steam-powered, 15 ton crane. In 1925, a company referred to as Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co, from Manitowoc, Wisconsin recognized the potential and the marketability of the tracked crane. They decided to team up with the Moore brothers so as to manufacture it and go into business.