Hungary's most modern crane can lift building materials up to 80-metre high high-rise buildings

The key element, symbol and yardstick of any construction project is the crane, which is used to bring building materials to the site. Although the lifting of heavy objects by crane has been used since ancient times, the tower crane is a relatively recent invention. German engineer Hans Liebherr patented the mobile, rotating tower crane in 1949 (at the same time as he founded the company that bears his name). His invention not only helped the post-World War II reconstruction effort, but quickly spread worldwide. In the more than seventy years since, his invention has made building countless tower blocks easier and faster.

Founded in 2004, the Hungarian-owned Mamut Daru was founded in 2004 and is based in Eger, approximately 130 kilometres from Budapest. Today, it operates a fleet of 63 tower cranes, 15 off-road and truck cranes, and a 100-tonne telescopic crawler crane.

You can raise from anywhere

It is no coincidence that Liebherr is considered the benchmark among crane manufacturers. It is also no coincidence that the Hungarian company Mamut Daru chose one of their most advanced products. As we learned from the Vertikal.net trade magazine's article, Mamut Daru's true flagship recently arrived at their site near the capital: the new 450-tonne Liebherr LTM 1450-8.1, the company's largest mobile crane to date.

The eight-axle LTM 1450-8.1 has a main engine of 85 metres and can lift up to 12 tonnes axle load with outriggers and winches. The crane also features VarioBallast adjustable counterweight and VarioBase variable support system.

On construction sites in Hungary, there is a great demand for a lifting system that can move heavy loads over a large radius when building steel structures. In Budapest, many buildings currently under construction are over 70 metres high, and the LTM 1450-8.1 long boom is the perfect choice for such projects.

"If one crane fails, the whole construction site stops," said Csaba Balogh, as reported by Vertikal.net. "Liebherr cranes are reliable and hold their value particularly well; and the service provided in Hungary is excellent: we appreciate the support of the company's service partner Pointed Kft.."

In order to work with the latest advances in crane technology, two more machines have been ordered from the manufacturer: a 230-tonne LTM 1230-5.1 and a 300-tonne LTM 1300-6.3 truck crane.

The first in Hungary

As we previously reported, the renovation of the headquarters of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences is currently underway at Épkar and Fejér – B.Á.L.. This naturally requires the use of a tower crane, and Mamut Daru provided a brand new RAIMONDI T187/10 tower crane for this special location. 

The newest in the manufacturer's T-series of tower sleeves. Hungary's first T-series Raimondi tower nozzle is equipped with the latest technology available: it is in continuous, remote communication with the manufacturer, so they can immediately get an overview of the current status of the equipment, whether it is load or wind load. This data is stored for up to six months.

The company's crane is the most powerful of the series, with a maximum capacity of 10 tonnes, resting on a 6 x 6 metre chassis; it has a maximum hook height of 58.7 metres and a maximum boom length of 67.5 metres. End-boom capacity at maximum boom length is 1.46 tonnes. To meet the needs of the construction of the MTA headquarters, the crane was equipped with a hook height of 47.5 metres and a boom length of 55 metres, so that it can lift 3 tonnes at the end of the boom with the "ultralift" system, which is an outstanding performance.