Crawler Crane
The crawler crane is a specific type of mobile crane which is available with either a telescopic boom or a lattice boom that moves upon crawler tracks. Since this unit is a self-propelled crane, it could move around a jobsite and completing jobs without a lot of set-up. Because of their huge weight and size, crawler cranes are are hard to transport from one site to another and are rather costly. The crawler's tracks offer stability to the machinery and enable the crane to work without using outriggers, although, there are some units that do utilize outriggers. As well, the tracks provide the machine's movement.
Early Mobile Cranes
Originally, the first mobile cranes were mounted to train cars and move along specifically made short rail lines. Once the 20th century arrived, the crawler tractor changed and this brought the introduction of crawler tracks to the agricultural industry as well as the construction industry. Not long after, the crawler tracks were adopted by excavators and this further showcased the equipment's versatility. It was not long after when manufacturers of cranes decided that the crawler track market was a safe bet.
The First Crawler Crane
Northwest Engineering, a crane manufacturer within the USA, was the first to mount its crane on crawler tracks during the 1920s. 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 chosen means of traction for heavy crane uses.
The Speedcrane
Developed by Ray and Charles Moore of Chicago, Illinois; the Moore Speedcrane was among the first to attempt to replicate rail lines for cranes. Manufactured within Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Speedcrane was a wheel-mounted, steam-powered, 15 ton crane. During the year 1925, a company known as Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co, from Manitowoc, Wisconsin recognized the tracked crane's marketability and potential. They decided to team up with the Moore brothers to be able to produce it and go into business.