A combination of product quality, engineering knowledge and customer support convinced a leading Indian real estate company to purchase Potain cranes from Manitowoc. The cranes are all working on a major residential development taking shape in Mumbai — India’s most populous city.
The development company, Indiabulls Real Estate, which has its own contracting division, approached four tower crane manufacturers for solutions on three high-rise towers that will comprise the new development. Because of restrictions on space, cost and time, Indiabulls needed to position the cranes internally to the structures, and the cranes were required to have 1.6 m mast sections that could fit inside the elevator shafts.
Only two manufacturers, including Manitowoc’s Potain brand, were able to supply cranes at the required working heights that could be fitted on 1.6 m mast sections and climb the full height of the development during construction.
The sales and engineering team from Manitowoc, including Amol Badgujar, regional sales manager for Potain; Hans Olsson, key accounts and special projects director; and Raymond Tang, regional product manager, worked closely with the design and planning team at Indiabulls to come up with a perfect solution.
The Manitowoc team proposed eight 10 t capacity MC 205 cranes to build the three high-rise towers. As required, all of the cranes would be mounted on 1.6 m mast sections and, because of space limitations, Manitowoc proposed shorter jibs of 25 m. The team also designed a coordinated climbing plan for the course of construction, synchronizing it with the placing of formwork and the completion of the building cores.
Sumit Bhat, general manager of Indiabulls Real Estate, said the company was looking for more than just cranes when planning the project.
“With this project, we weren’t only buying a product, we were buying a solution,” he said. “We looked at all the options available, and the plan from Manitowoc was the best. Their team understood our needs and helped us develop an optimized lift plan. In addition, Potain is a brand we know well, and the company has strong customer support from Manitowoc Crane Care, so we knew we were in very capable hands.”
The three towers that make up the project are: the Sky Suites, a 75-story tower using two MC 205 cranes; the Sky Forest, an 80-story tower using four MC 205 cranes; and the Sky, a 65-story tower using two MC 205 cranes. All of the cranes will eventually reach working heights of 270 m.
Sandeep Kapur, vice president of plant and machinery at Indiabulls Real Estate, said the added experience of the Manitowoc team showed.
“We have extensive experience with Potain cranes, so we know the quality that comes with them, but the added experience is what really helped with this project,” he said “Even when we were doing our load calculations and beam designs, we were constantly talking with Amol, Hans and Raymond, and their feedback helped us establish the ideal structure for the buildings.”
The cranes spend approximately 50 percent of their time handling steel reinforcement and 40 percent lifting the concrete formwork. The remaining 10 percent is spent placing concrete by bucket. Loads range between 2 t and 2.5 t.
Indiabulls Real Estate is one of the largest property companies in India, with developments that include premium office space, commercial complexes, high-end residential buildings, retail spaces, hotels and resorts. The company has delivered over 300,000 sq. m of developed space with a value of $1.75 billion over its first four years - more than any other Indian start-up real estate company over the same period.