Not all journeys to construction sites are as romantic for crane operators as the trip to the largest island in Bavaria’s Lake Chiemsee. Well before sunrise, the four-axle mobile construction crane from BKL arrived at the jetty to be ferried across to Herreninsel on the first trip of the cargo ferry. After the short crossing, the journey continued across the island to the park of the castle built by the Bavarian monarch Ludwig II.
Against the backdrop of Herrenchiemsee Palace, the scaffolders were already waiting for the Liebherr crane with pre-assembled components. There is a good reason why an MK mobile construction crane was used for this work. Christian Hofmann, project manager at the scaffolding company Westermaier GmbH, explains: “Compared to a small mobile crane, the MK 88-4.1E offers us a significantly greater hook height. In combination with trolley travel, the scaffolding components can be lowered precisely over the delicate figure fountains, which are up to 13 metres high, and navigated even more easily on long slings than with a conventional, luffing telescopic boom.”
Hook height of up to 59 metres possible
The two large fountain figures were housed in the middle of the large, drained water basins in the magnificent park. The crane staging areas outside these fountain installations required a reach of around 25 metres. No problem for the MK 88-4.1E with its 45-metre-long, foldable horizontal jib, which can achieve hook heights of over 59 metres via various steep positions. Sufficient scope, therefore, for the assembly of the large-format components.
The crane was repositioned once between the two fountain complexes. The change of location, which the experienced MK operator from BKL carried out with ease, took only around half an hour. The mobile construction crane was then set up and ready for use again, and work on the next fountain could begin. Once the scaffolding structures had been erected, the crane lifted the large plastic tarpaulins into place. Attached to the outside of the scaffolding domes, they reliably protect the historic figures and the fountain’s technical components from the elements during the winter months.
The raised cab of the MK 88-4.1E proved particularly helpful for the precise positioning of the loads. From a height of around 20 metres, crane operator Drago had an excellent view of the scaffolders at work – and, at the same time, of the magnificent façade of Herrenchiemsee Palace. He was further assisted by the hook camera attached to the trolley, which transmitted a vertical view of the hook block and load directly to the monitor in the cab. This allowed the components to be guided with centimetre precision according to the fitters’ instructions.
By late afternoon, the work was completed and the two large fountain installations were fully wrapped up for winter. After the boom had been folded away fully automatically, the mobile construction crane set off on its return journey to the BKL site. As it had done early that morning, the Liebherr MK 88-4.1E left Herreninsel by cargo ferry and set off on the short sea crossing across Lake Chiemsee back to the mainland.
