Crawler Crane
The crawler crane is a specific kind of mobile crane which is offered with either a telescopic boom or a lattice boom that moves upon crawler tracks. Because this unit is a self-propelled crane, it could move around a jobsite and accomplishing jobs without much set-up. Because of their huge size and weight, crawler cranes are fairly costly and even difficult to transport from one location to another. The crawler's tracks provide stability to the equipment and allow the crane to work without using outriggers, however, there are several units which do utilize outriggers. As well, the tracks provide the movement of the machine.
Early Mobile Cranes
The first mobile cranes were initially mounted to train cars. They moved along short rail lines that were particularly made for the project. Once the 20th century arrived, the crawler tractor changed and this brought the introduction of crawler tracks to the construction business and the agricultural business. Not long after, the crawler tracks were adopted by excavators and this further featured the versatility of the machine. It was not long after before crane companies decided that the crawler track market was a safe bet.
The Very First Crawler Crane
Around the 1920s, Northwest Engineering, a crane company within the USA, mounted its first crane on crawler tracks. It described the new equipment as a "locomotive crane, independent of tracks and moveable under its own power." By the mid-1920s, crawler tracks had become the chosen means of traction for heavy crane uses.
The Speedcrane
Developed by Charles and Ray Moore of Chicago, Illinois; the Moore Speedcrane was among the first to attempt to copy rail lines for cranes. Made in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Speedcrane was 15 ton, wheel-mounted, steam-powered crane. In 1925, a company referred to as Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co, from Manitowoc, Wisconsin recognized the marketability and the potential of the tracked crane. They decided to team up with the Moore brothers so as to produce it and go into business.