Tower Cranes Grow to New Heights
Throughout the 1950s in the tower crane industry, there were numerous significant developments in the design of these large cranes. Numerous manufacturers were started making bottom slewing cranes with a telescoping mast. These types of machinery dominated the construction industry for both office and apartment block construction. Lots of of the top tower crane manufacturers didn't use cantilever jib designs. Instead, they made the switch to luffing jibs and eventually, the use of luffing jibs became the regular practice.
Within Europe, there were major improvements being made in the development and design of tower cranes. Usually, construction sites were constricted areas. Having to depend upon rail systems to move several tower cranes, ended up being very costly and inconvenient. Some manufacturers were offering saddle jib cranes which had hook heights of 80 meters or 262 feet. These kinds of cranes were equipped with self-climbing mechanisms which enabled sections of mast to be inserted into the crane so that it can grow along with the structures it was constructing upwards.
The long jibs on these particular cranes also covered a bigger work area. All of these developments resulted in the practice of erecting and anchoring cranes in the lift shaft of a building. Afterwards, this is the method that became the industry standard.
From the 1960s, the main focus on tower crane design and development started to cover a higher load moment, covering a larger job radius, climbing mechanisms and technology, faster erection strategies, and new control systems. Moreover, focus was spent on faster erection strategies with the most important developments being made in the drive technology department, among other things.