September 8 - Construction Products, Inc (CPI) from Jackson, USA, recently celebrated its 50th Anniversary with the purchase of a single-beam mobile gantry crane from Shuttlelift.
As a leader in high-quality, precast and prestressed concrete products, CPI of Tennessee specialises in bridges, commercial buildings, railroads and marina construction. Diversification has been the cornerstone of the company since inception. A sampling of its early work included major industry and government projects such as the structural concrete portions of the Quaker Oats and Procter and Gamble facilities in Jackson. The company is also known for its prestressed highway beams, and has spans in numerous bridge projects and railway bridges in seven states.
The new Shuttlelift SB50 single-beam gantry crane was considered because the company needed a crane that could lift at higher capacities and exclusively perform tandem lifts. The SB50 was a perfect fit and is used in conjunction with CPI's existing conventional cranes, regardless of brand.
Shuttlelift's sales manager, Dan Reinholtz explains, "Throughout the industry, what used to be picked with a single spreader bar and a conventional crane is now difficult with the growing length of precast beams. The SB series cranes are a cost effective way to lift in tandem without investing in additional conventional cranes."
CPI's president Don Thomson is pleased with how the new single-beam gantry crane operates. "We love the versatility of the crane and are finding many more uses for the machine than we initially thought. The crane is simple to use and we were also impressed with the speed in which it operates."
CPI is using the versatility of the SB gantry crane not only for structural picks but also to carry concrete buckets or smaller precast concrete elements, all of which are single point picks.
Additional selling points included the wireless remote control, which increase the operator's load visibility; improving operational safety. The remote is laid out in the same format as the backup operator cab controls for an extra measure of efficiency and safety. As Thomson mentioned, "The radio remote control allows the crane operator to assist with the rigging directly."
