Crawler Crane
The mobile crawler crane is particular crane designed with either a telescopic boom or a lattice boom. These move upon the crawlers tracks. Because this crane is self-propelled, it could move around particular work sites without the need for much set up. Due to their huge size and weight, crawler cranes are rather expensive and even hard to transport from one place to another. The crawler's tracks offer the machinery stability and enable the crane to function without utilizing outriggers, however, there are several units which do utilize outriggers. Moreover, the tracks provide the machine's movement.
Early Mobile Cranes
The first mobile cranes were initially mounted to train cars. They moved along short rail lines which were specifically constructed for the project. Once the 20th century arrived, the crawler tractor evolved and this brought the introduction of crawler tracks to the construction industry as well as the agricultural business. Not long after, the crawler tracks were adopted by excavators and this further featured the machine's versatility. It was not long after before manufacturers of cranes decided that the crawler track market was a safe bet.
The First Crawler Crane
Around the 1920s, Northwest Engineering, a crane company in the USA, mounted its first crane on crawler tracks. It described the new machinery as a "locomotive crane, independent of tracks and moveable under its own power." By the middle part of the 1920s, crawler tracks had become the preferred means of traction for heavy crane uses.
The Speedcrane
The Moore Speedcrane, developed by Ray and Charles Moore of Chicago, Illinois was amongst the first attempts to copy the rails for cranes. Made in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Speedcrane was a wheel-mounted, steam-powered, 15 ton crane. In the year 1925, a company called Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co, from Manitowoc, Wisconsin recognized the potential and the marketability of the tracked crane. They decided to team up with the Moore brothers in order to manufacture it and go into business.