Manitowoc’s Wide Boom Plus Insert Kit Boosts The Capabilities Of The MLC300 VPC-Max Crawler Crane

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Manitowoc’s Wide Boom Plus insert kit gives its MLC300 VPC-Max crane the ability to work on today’s taller wind turbines without increasing crane footprint or setup time. (Photo courtesy of Manitowoc.)

Manitowoc used feedback from its Voice of the Customer program to develop the Wide Boom Plus insert kit for its MLC300 VPC-Max lattice boom crawler crane, then received more input from the first customers to use the kit in the field. The updated attachment, which debuted in August 2022, adds 59 feet (18 meters) of tip height and 30% greater lifting capacity to allow the 330-ton (300-metric-ton) crane to work on taller wind towers.

Customers Weigh In

MLC300 VPC-Max owner Lomma Crane & Rigging of South Kearny, New Jersey, partnered with JMS Crane & Rigging of Billings, Montana, to install the first Wide Boom Plus kit sold, as chronicled in this earlier blog post.

“Lomma and JMS were very vocal about their desire to have us develop this solution, so we’re delighted that it’s already proving highly successful,” says Brennan Seeliger, Manitowoc’s product manager for crawler cranes.

“We are excited to have been a part of the kit’s development and now see it at work in the field,” says Lomma Heavy Lift Manager Steve Burkholder. “It radically expands the use of the MLC300 for renewable energy jobs. That extra boom gives a 452-ft (138-m) tip height and is good for 124,400 pounds—that’s unheard of for a machine of this size!” Burkholder also notes that the “super crane’s” load chart is 100% available in wind speeds up to 15 mph.

“Now that 89-, 90- and 95-meter towers are becoming more prevalent, we would have to rely on our larger Manitowoc Model 16000 or add a luffing jib to our MLC300 if Manitowoc hadn’t answered our prayers for the Wide Boom Plus kit,” says JMS Vice President Rich Johnson.

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The Wide Boom Plus kit “radically expands the use of the MLC300 for renewable energy jobs,” says Lomma Heavy Lift Manager Steve Burkholder. (Photo courtesy of Manitowoc.)

The MLC300 VPC-Max

Manitowoc’s standard MLC300 VPC-Max configuration has a 334.6-ft (102-m) boom and a 393.7-ft (120-m) maximum tip height. It can be equipped with a 137.8-ft (42-m) fixed jib or a 315-ft (96-m) luffing jib. The crane’s VPC (Variable Position Counterweight)-Max attachment automatically shifts the counterweight position to increase lift capability and load moment rating without using carbody ballast. Besides providing large-crane capacity with small-crane logistics and site benefits, VPC-Max gives the MLC300 significantly reduced transport requirements and an improved center of gravity for lower ground bearing pressures.

Find The Right Manitowoc Crane

Look to CraneTrader when you’re searching for new and used Manitowoc cranes for sale, including lattice boom crawler cranes such as the MLC300.

Source: Manitowoc