Running a 40-ton truck crane on a tight city site versus a 150-ton crawler for the same lift

We had to set a 12,000 pound HVAC unit on a roof in Chicago, and the foreman wanted to bring in the big crawler. I argued for the smaller truck crane, parked it in a single lane closure overnight. The crawler would have needed a full street shutdown and three days of assembly. The truck crane did the lift in four hours, with less ground pressure on the old pavement. When do you push back on the 'bigger is better' mindset on urban jobs?

3 comments

3 Comments

stellac9723d ago

Yeah, that "more problems than it solves" line is spot on. How do you figure out the real cost of those extra setup days versus just the crane rental?

cooper.max23d ago

That Chicago job is the perfect example. You saved two days of street closure and a ton of setup cost. The pushback comes when the bigger rig creates more problems than it solves.

gibson.seth13h ago

Used to think bigger was always better. Cranes, trucks, you name it. See a big rig, think it saves time. But that Chicago job changed my mind. Realized the extra setup and street closure problems aren't worth it if you're pinching pennies on small jobs. Sometimes the smaller rig is the smarter move even if it takes an extra day.