April 19 - Neeb, the Wuppertal-based crane service company, has taken a strategic business move into expanding its fleet through the acquisition of a Liebherr LR 1600/2 crawler crane which caters for the needs of wind power systems installation.

Designed with wind farm operations in mind, it is particularly the ability of this 600-tonne crawler crane to move rapidly between two sites, still fully equipped and completely ballasted, that appeals to operators.

Weighing in at a total of 480 tonnes, the crane can roll on from its last completed job to the next site, its crawler travel gear with a track width of ten metres having no trouble at all in crossing meadows and fields on the way. It can take just 90 minutes after finishing off at one windmill to be ready to place the first tower section at the next one, saysLiebherr.

One example of the crane at work is the installation of a complete equipped rotor, with a diameter of 71 m, at theDargelütz wind farm, in the region of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Three Enercon installations of the type E-70/4 were assembled here by the crane in February, and, when the rotor and its blades were lifted, the LR 1600/2 went to an outreach of 23 m with a load of 53 tonnes on the hook.

Another new acquisition is the assistance crane used on the site: a Liebherr LTM 1130-5.1 mobile crane. The purchase of this mobile unit and the LR 1600/2 crawler crane, expands the company's already extensive fleet, helping to mark Neeb's 50th anniversary.

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