Gulf Construction Online - Liebherr cranes meet Madinah challenge

German Expertise

The NC-B 12-70 cranes are helping tackle the challenges of a congested site.

Liebherr cranes meet Madinah challenge

The latest flat-top cranes from German construction equipment giant Liebherr are currently facilitating work on a major museum and park project in central Madinah.

01 March 2022

The most powerful flat-top crane of Germany-based Liebherr’s NC-B series – the NC-B 12-70 – is currently engaged on its first job in Madinah, Saudi Arabia, where it is part of a museum construction project.

This 12-tonne model is Liebherr’s latest addition to its NC-B series, which is designed for price-sensitive markets and customers. Thanks to its long reach, the NC-B 12-70 is suitable for both cast-in-place concrete construction as well as for the precise lifting of heavy prefabricated parts, according to the leading construction equipment manufacturer.

The cranes are helping tackle the biggest challenge presented by the construction site in Madinah: tight space.

“High-traffic roads and tall neighbouring buildings required crane operations to be planned with precision, something which Liebherr Tower Crane Solutions closely supported,” says a spokesman for the company.

With its maximum jib length of 70 m and a lifting capacity of up to 12 tonnes, the NC-B 12-70 is reliable, economic and safe in its operation. In addition, the tower crane also offers a jib head load capacity of 2,000 kg at maximum jib. These technical features make the crane an optimal solution for high-performance lifts in densely built-up metropolitan areas, he adds.

“It was Liebherr’s professional approach and fast execution of measures that impressed customer Mobco for Construction and Civil Works, whose latest building project, the Safiyyah Museum and Park is under way in the centre of Madinah,” the spokesman remarks.

Following completion, it will include a museum, shops, cafés and a public garden complete with palm trees.

The NC-B concept is optimised for transport and assembly. Five trucks deliver all elements of the slewing part with 70 m jib length to site quickly and easily. Standard-sized containers can be used for transport. Once on site, assembly is straightforward. The central unit with slewing platform and connection element only requires one lift. If needed, the slewing platform, control cabinet and cabin can be installed separately to meet the assembly crane’s performance capacity, he points out.

Established technologies from Liebherr’s existing flat-top series further accelerate assembly. The LiConnect quick connection system enables the jib to be assembled quickly and safely in 5-m sections.

Both 16 EC 240 and 21 HC 290 tower systems are compatible with the NC-B 12-70, with the former, measuring 1.6 x 1.6 m, having been specifically designed for use with the NC-B series. The tower sections have a standard length of 3.9 m, which enables climbing on the building. Longer tower sections of 11.7 m can also be used for efficiently achieving a freestanding hook height of up to 50 ms. Using the 21 HC 290 tower system, the freestanding hook height can be increased up to 77.7 m.

The hydraulic climbing unit is designed with flexibility in mind; it is suitable for both internal and external climbing, completely detachable and compatible with other Liebherr tower cranes. As a result, the operator only needs one device, which can be used on various construction sites.

The hoist gear, slewing gear and trolley are controlled by a frequency converter. This makes stepless acceleration during lifting, lowering and slewing effortless and enables high-precision crane operation. Drive units with frequency converter not only provide excellent handling characteristics, they also minimise the risk of damage to the crane, and flatten occurring power spikes.

The Micromove smart assistance system, which ensures exact positioning of heavy loads, is included in the package as standard.

Liebherr also offers a six-tonne version as part of its NC-B series in the form of the NC-B 6-62. Short delivery times are available for both series without compromising on in-house technologies, thanks to the production site in Pune, India.

Founded in southern Germany, the Liebherr Group is a family-run technology company with a highly diversified product portfolio. It is not only one of the largest construction equipment manufacturers in the world, but also provides high-quality and user-oriented products and services in a wide range of other areas. Today, the group consists of more than 140 companies across all continents, employs around 48,000 people and, in 2020, achieved a total turnover of over €10.3 billion ($11.6 billion).