A crane that climbs to its own workplace: the machine in this footage moves up a tall tower in stages, using the structure for support. The full lifting height does not have to come from one enormous boom standing on the ground.
It is a different answer to a familiar construction problem. The higher components must go, the larger a conventional ground-based crane can become. A climbing system moves its lifting machinery closer to the work.
Staying supported while moving up
The basic idea is to retain enough support throughout the climb. One part stays attached while another is raised; the support can then be repositioned for the next step.
A Chinese patent for a climbing lifting system, for example, describes hydraulic cylinders. Such designs illustrate how the movement can be organised; individual systems differ.
Why wind turbine builders are interested
Wind turbines require heavy components at great height. A conventional crane needs reach, a solid working platform and transport for its own parts. That adds up on remote or cramped sites.
Danish company Liftra is developing the LT1500, a separate system that winches itself along a turbine tower. It describes a design for hub heights above 200 metres and components up to 120 tonnes. Those figures belong to the LT1500, not the machine in this video.
The tower shares the lifting work
Once a crane hangs from a structure, its attachments and loads become especially important. The tower must carry forces from both climbing and lifting. Crane, attachments and installation sequence therefore belong in one engineered plan.
Wind still determines what can be done at height. The attraction is a different organisation of the task: a more compact lifting machine uses an existing structure to get progressively closer to the next construction step.
