Why is Liebherr now supplying the LTC 1050-3.1 with two booms?

We have developed another option for our successful LTC 1050-3.1 compact crane – in future you will have the choice between the existing 36 metre telescopic boom with the TELEMATIK high speed telescoping system and a new 31 metre boom featuring rope extension technology. The first machines with the new telescopic boom will be delivered in the autumn. Our Technical Director, Dr Ulrich Hamme, explains why we developed the new boom.

The LTC 1050-3.1 is the only all-terrain crane in our product portfolio which contains the letter “C” in its name. That stands for “Compact”, and means that it is a particularly compact single-cab crane which is designed for operating in very constricted site and space conditions. On the other hand, the LTC 1050-3.1 is also designed to be suitable for universal use, just like a conventional LTM crane. In other words, the idea has always been to make this crane a jack of all trades.

To date, the LTC 1050-3.1 has been fitted with a 36 metre telescopic boom based on our “TELEMATIK” single-cylinder high speed telescoping system. Although this system has proved to be very practical on our LTM cranes, it has not been able to meet all the requirements placed on the LTC model. This has become apparent in our in-depth discussions with our customers and lots of crane operators.

Various criteria play a role when selecting the boom and telescoping system – in addition to the “hard” arguments based on technical matters and engineering facts, which can be expressed in figures, there are also “soft” conditions which are based on everyday practice.

These include the following:
– High lifting capacities (in terms of radius and hoist height)
– Short basic boom length (fully retracted)
– High maximum boom length (fully extended)
– Precision telescoping, including with a load on the hook
– Flexible operation in highly constricted areas (for example under an industrial unit roof, installing a gantry crane)
– Intuitive, proactive telescoping (simple telescoping paths)
– High telescoping speed (telescoping handling jobs, for example assembling trade show equipment) and fast boom length adjustment
– Sensitive, smooth telescoping
– Permanently visible length adjustments to the boom whilst telescoping (transparent movements)
– Time-tested, familiar operation using suitable telescoping technology (crane operator’s experience)

This article was published in the UpLoad magazine 02 | 2021.