We are looking forward to see the HLC in action during its first operation at Moray East Windpark. The Taisun Gantry Crane is one of the largest cranes in the world and holds a Guinness World Record for sheer lifting power. There are still a few steps to finalise the construction of the crane. Robert Pitschmann, Sales project manager of the HLC 295000, commented: “The boom was the last large construction element of the HLC that had to be lifted on the Orion. The maritime and ship-building industry has a constant need to move the worlds heaviest loads between ship and shore and even employees the biggest crane. The HLC 295000 is expected to open up new markets for the Belgian offshore and marine engineering specialist, notably in the installation of ever-larger wind turbines and the decommissioning of offshore oil and gas installations. It’s set on a double cab truck and can lift 1200 metric tons that’s nearly 700 automobiles. It also has the longest telescopic boom in the world, which extends fully to 100 meters. Global heavy-lift equipment company ALE has announced that it is bringing its latest generation AL.SK350, the worlds heaviest capacity land-based crane. The crane will be installed on board the offshore installation vessel, Orion, a dual-fuel vessel owned by DEME of Belgium, which will be capable of lifting 5,000 tonnes at an outreach of 35m and a maximum lifting height in excess of 175m above the ship’s deck. Biggest Liebherr crane: The Liebherr LTM 11200-9.1, built by the German company Liebherr Group, is the most powerful mobile crane ever built. The boom was installed with the support of the new Liebherr TCC 78000 portal crane at the port of Rostock which facilitated a successful connection to the crane’s slewing unit. The object lifted was a barge, ballasted with water. The largest crane that Germany’s Liebherr has ever built, the Heavy Lift Crane (HLC) 295000, has moved a step closer to completion with the successful installation of the 145m-long boom by the company’s Rostock unit. The heaviest weight lifted by a crane is 20,133 tonnes (44,385,667.25 lb) achieved by the ‘Taisun’ crane at Yantai Raffles Shipyard, Yantai, China on 18 April 2008.