Manitowoc engineers celebrate the remarkable milestones at Grove’s facility in Wilhelmshaven, Germany.
Manitowoc’s mobile crane brand Grove is celebrating landmark sales for two of its flagship all-terrain cranes. The company has built and sold 200 GMK6300Ls and 50 GMK6400s, making them the best-selling cranes in their class. Both cranes have sold at a remarkable rate since entering serial production in 2011 and 2013 respectively, making them two of the company’s greatest success stories.
Manitowoc celebrated these impressive milestones at an event at its manufacturing plant in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, where both the GMK6300L and GMK6400 are built. Andreas Cremer, global product director all-terrain and truck-mounted cranes at Manitowoc, who attended the event, highlighted the strong teamwork of those involved in creating the innovative designs that have made these cranes so popular.
“These two cranes set new benchmarks for what all-terrain cranes can do – and we are very proud not only of them but the people who design and build them,” he says. “Our designers and engineers are true innovators with decades of experience who listen to customers and create new concepts that push the boundaries of what all-terrain cranes can do. Our work never stops and we look forward to introducing more innovations and reaching further milestones in the future.”
Grove’s GMK6300L has a 300 t capacity and the longest boom in its class, at 80 m. It was first seen at the bauma 2010 trade show in Munich, Germany, and serial deliveries started the following year. The 400 t capacity Grove GMK6400 offers a 60 m boom that can be extended to 134 m with a luffing jib. In that configuration, the crane can perform lifts not possible with any other six-axle, or even seven-axle crane.
Both cranes have proved a real hit with customers around the world; the GMK6300L has been sold in 27 countries on four continents, while the GMK6400 can be found working in France, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Denmark, Russia, New Zealand and the U.S.
Typical applications for the GMK6300L and GMK6400 include lift work for high-rise buildings in downtown areas, tower crane erection, repair and construction work at industrial facilities and wind farm maintenance.
Grove GMK6300L
The 200th GMK6300L was sold to Austrian transport and lifting specialist Felbermayr, who took delivery of the crane at the event in Wilhelmshaven. The company will welcome the crane to its 400-strong European fleet at a ceremony at its branch in Lanzendorf near Vienna, Austria.
“We have operated Grove cranes for many years and are delighted to be playing a part in helping Manitowoc reach this milestone,” says Thomas Stocker, crane manager at Felbermayr. “The crane will be a welcome addition to our large fleet, and we expect its industry-leading capabilities to make it a very busy machine.”
Established in 1942, the Felbermayr Holding employs 2,800 people and provides transport and lifting solutions to businesses and civil engineering projects throughout Europe.
Several factors make the GMK6300L such a popular crane in so many regional markets and differing industries. As well as its record-breaking reach and strength, customers are quick to praise its mobility and overall quality.
Grove GMK6400
The 50th GMK6400 was sold to transport and lifting specialist Gebr. Markewitsch, who also took delivery in Wilhelmshaven. The GMK6400 is now the largest mobile crane in the company’s fleet and will work on a wide range of projects from its base in Nuremberg.
Grove’s GMK6400 earned Manitowoc the “Innovation Manufacturer 2013” award from Europe’s leading lifting and transportation trade association, the European Association of Abnormal Road Transport and Mobile Cranes (ESTA). The GMK6400 features a range of unique design elements including a single engine concept, self-rigging MegaWingLift and the MegaDrive hydrostatic drive system.
Built at Manitowoc’s facility in Wilhelmshaven, the GMK6300L and GMK6400 are among the first cranes to benefit from the wide-ranging quality improvements carried out at the plant over the past five years.