Production models of Link-Belt's 75-ton (70-mt) 75RT have begun to ship from the company's headquarters in Lexington, KY. September shipments of the newly announced rough terrain crane have already been delivered with additional orders scheduled for customers across the U.S. and Canada through 2017.
"The reach, the capacity, V-CALC (Variable Confined Area Lifting Capacities), our new RCL (Link-Belt Pulse 2.0) - there's a lot to like about the 75RT," said Link-Belt Rough Terrain Crane Product Manager, Brian Smoot. "We listened to a lot of customers with many years of experience in the crane market to see what was needed to really stand out in this segment."
NessCampbell Crane + Rigging (NessCampbell) received their 75RT following their announced purchase at CONEXPO 2017. NessCampbell first had the 75RT working for several months at a major aerospace manufacturer in Everett, Washington where it was used for steel erection. Following that job, the 75RT placed multiple stories of glass panels for a high rise project in downtown Portland, and most recently completed 5,000 ft. (1,524 m) of sound barrier walls alongside Interstate 5 near Salem, Oregon.
"I really like the winches, and smoothness of the functions on this crane," says 16 year operator for NessCampbell, Joe Taber. "I can really dial it in with the fine metering. We set glass panels in Portland, up on a building with full jib and boom and it was really smooth."
For sound barrier construction alongside Interstate 5, Taber and his crew placed 270 piers and approximately 135 panels with over 70 ft. (21.3m) of elevation change. Narrow cut outs, sometimes a quarter mile from the actual interstate, meant extremely tight conditions where the new 75RT's variable outrigger configuration (V-CALC) proved necessary.
"If we would have had to keep our outriggers in the mid position on the right side of the crane I don't think we could have made some of these lifts," said Taber. "Since we could bring them in on that side and keep outriggers in the mid position on the left, we still had enough chart to lift the 10,000 lb. (4 535 kg) panels."
NessCampbell provides the largest fleet of cranes and alternative lifting equipment to the Pacific Northwest and has done so since 1947. NessCampbell is supported by their Link-Belt distributor, Triad Machinery, who has been a Link-Belt distributor since 1992.
