Lifting communities with affordable housing
To meet the demands of affordable housing construction, MRA Equipment Rental LLC is leveraging Liebherr’s self-erecting tower cranes to streamline modular constructionsites throughout Miami, including Princeton Gateways I. These advanced cranesenable rapid deployment and offer easy maneuverability, making them an ideal choicefor the urban construction site.
After 25 years in business, our company was well established and ready for a significant upgrade to our entire fleet of self-erecting cranes. After compiling extensive global research, we attended Bauma and chose to move forward with Liebherr tower cranes.
Renowned for its tropical climate, vibrant culture, and diverse community, Miami is a highly sought after city for those looking to establish their roots. Despite the many advantagesof this modern city, a major challenge remains – there is a significant shortage of housing options for tens of thousands of residents within certain income brackets.
As the housing deficit continues to grow, companies are seeking initiatives to provide high-quality, affordable housing sites for the South Florida region. Chilean-based company VAIN has partnered with the well-established Alta Developers to create a vertically integrated construction solution, maximizing efficiency to deliver high-quality, affordable housing units at the most competitive prices on the market with Liebherr tower cranes.
“After 25 years in business, our company was well established and ready for a significant upgrade to our entire fleet of self-erecting cranes. After compiling extensive global research, we attended Bauma and chose to move forward with Liebherr tower cranes. We appreciate that Liebherr is also a family-run company that offers a global service network and high-quality products,” said Ernesto Valle, owner of VAIN. “We bought our first ten Liebherr self-erecting cranes for projects based in Chile, and later progressed operations into Peru, Brazil, and Panama. Now, we are very excited to begin our first job with the self-erectors in the United States.”
Lifting up communities | Liebherr
Through this joint venture, MRA Equipment Rental LLC was established to exclusively manage the rental of heavy equipment for all in-house developments, beginning with their inaugural US-based project: Princeton Gateways I in Miami, Florida. Scheduled to break ground in August 2025, the development will be fully completed in February 2027. Located in Princeton, a small city in the southern part of Miami-Dade County, MRA Equipment Rental utilizes the Liebherr 125 K crane and 81 K.1 crane self-erecting tower cranes to create the eight-building, 500-unit development at Princeton Gateways I.
It’s always been a part of our objectives and challenges to look for efficiencies in both costs and time when developing a new job. This effort and our work with Liebherr are in line with that objective and the goal of delivering great homes for future families.
Both the 125 K and 81 K.1 cranes are being utilized to lift pre-assembled formwork, rebar, and concrete. The cranes were designed to operate simultaneously as part of a carefully planned daily cycle, allowing the construction of two apartments per day. This makes it crucial forLiebherr tower cranes to operate efficiently to meet these daily scheduling demands.
“It’s always been a part of our objectives and challenges to look for efficiencies in both costs and time when developing a new job. This effort and our work with Liebherr are in line with that objective and the goal of delivering great homes for future families,” said Ignacio Montes, president of Alta Developers.
By taking a much more industrial approach to developing a residential community, Montes noted that they are looking for more continuity, remaining efficient in cost, and hoping to create a new production line for Alta Developers in future.
We chose Liebherr because of the strong and well-established commercial relationship we’ve built over the years. We are highly satisfied with the performance and reliability of their machinery, which has consistently met our operational needs.
Extraordinary and effective
MRA Equipment Rental noted that Liebherr’s self-erecting cranes are extraordinary machines that offer the capabilities of a tower crane with the flexibility of a mobile crane. Both fast assembly and disassembly make it quicker and more cost-effective to mobilize and relocate the cranes around the Miami site.
“We chose Liebherr because of the strong and well-established commercial relationship we’ve built over the years. We are highly satisfied with the performance and reliability of their machinery, which has consistently met our operational needs,” said Sebastiao Salvador, representative of MRA Equipment Rental. “Our fleet currently includes more than 20 Liebherr cranes operating across Latin America and North America, which speaks to our trust in Liebherr’s equipment and ongoing support.’’
MRA Equipment Rental specializes in providing construction equipment, such as cranes, backhoes, and other heavy machinery, exclusively to their in-house General Contractor, Affordable Housing Factory. Their core business includes not only equipment rentals but also lifting and rigging services tailored to the individual needs of their affordable housing construction developments.
Exceptional flexibility
Liebherr offers a wide variety of self-erecting tower cranes suitable for use across multiple applications. The benefits of self-erecting cranes include rapid setup and versatility across project sites, making them ideal for building multi-occupancy houses in urban areas, which provides an optimal solution for MRA Equipment Rental and Affordable Housing Factory’s initiative. Self-erecting cranes are also transported on the road as complete units. Due to their short wheelbase and compact slewing platform design, they can be maneuvered easily between tight construction sites within Miami.
“The Liebherr cranes are the heart of the jobsite, moving all the materials required on site. Using a self-erecting crane is also vital for such a large project because we can take them down in half a day and reposition them the same day somewhere else on location,’’ said Valle.
The self-erecting K cranes also offer exceptional flexibility for MRA Equipment to adapt to different construction site requirements. The variable hook heights and precise jib positioning enable optimal placement in tight spaces, so operators can get the K cranes in position safely and efficiently as the modular construction continues throughout the South Florida jobsite.
The MRA team also noted that the Liebherr self-erecting tower cranes are exceptionally easy and safe for their operators to use. Equipped with a handheld remote control, joysticks allow the operator to lift, move, and place materials as needed on the busy site.
Versatile solution
The K cranes have established themselves as a versatile solution for a diverse range of heavy lifting tasks. Equipped with updated cabs, modern drives, radio controls, and intelligent assistance systems, the cranes in Liebherr’s self-erecting K series are based on a time-tested design that allows for quick assembly.
“Liebherr’s excellent service staff and engineers consistently support our ongoing needs. They closely work with us to find the most effective solutions in the shortest time possible, keeping us within schedule to continue to expand our operations and provide affordable housing developments,’’ said Valle.
