Potain Highlights Productivity Benefits Of Hup 40-30 Self-Erecting Tower Crane In Custom Homebuilding Applications

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Idaho-based Pinetop Custom Homes recently used a Potain Hup 40-30 self-erecting tower crane in two custom homebuilding projects in that state. The crane helped shave off about 60 days’ construction time for one project, Pinetop says. (Photo courtesy of Manitowoc.)

Potain self-erecting tower cranes are common to construction sites across North America. Increasingly, though, they’re proving a major asset in custom homebuilding projects due to their ability to reduce labor costs, perform the same jobs as other machines, and significantly enhance productivity. Potain, a Manitowoc-owned company, recently highlighted such benefits of its Hup 40-30 self-erecting telescopic crane as provided by Idaho custom homebuilder Pinetop Custom Homes and its sister company Rocky Mountain Crane in separate projects in McCall and Stanley, Idaho.

50% Faster

Pinetop bought its first Potain self-erector in 2004, an Igo model it used to assemble prefabricated wall, floor, and roof segments. Rocky Mountain Crane now has 25 Potain Hup and Igo cranes in its fleet. Their ability to stretch across entire jobsites to lift floor joists, wall sections, and more has essentially enabled Pinetop to build entire homes with just self-erecting cranes.

“We are able to build houses 50% faster with the self-erecting tower cranes than with other types of equipment,” says Pinetop owner Dusty Bitton. “They’re also easier to get to the jobsite. They have axles underneath, so you can just pull them onto the site. They’re silent from electrical operation and don’t produce exhaust fumes, and with their remote control, they really increase visibility and precision picking.”

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Among the benefits that Potain’s Hup 40-30 self-erecting crane offers custom homebuilders is the ability for one operator to both remotely operate and rig a load right from where he’s standing. (Photo courtesy of Manitowoc.)

Creating Possibilities

Potain sells nearly 20 Hup and Igo self-erectors. The Hup 40-30 has a 4.4-ton (4-metric-ton) lift capacity and a 1.1-ton (1-mt) maximum load at jib. For the McCall project, the crane’s 131-foot (40-meter) jib helped overcome a challenge of building a home whose footprint was larger than the existing land initially. Enabling the crew to place timber frames, roofing materials, rafters, and ceiling panels, it saved Pinetop roughly 60 days’ construction time.

The Stanley home, meanwhile, sits on a ridge in the Sawtooth Mountains, offering no equipment access on the structure’s south side. “This home couldn’t be built in this location within the short time frame we have without the use of the Hup 40-30,” Bitton says.

Source: Manitowoc