A new German-made 1,378-ton crawler crane the manufacturer says can support a 715-ft boom and luffing jib will be used for the first time in the U.S. to install a large-scale selective catalytic reduction system at the coal-fired 1,300-Mw Zimmer power station in Moscow, Ohio. The modular Demag CC-8800 has been assembled from 85 trucks and will shortly begin lifting equipment, some weighing in at 170 tons, from 36 barges over a 230-ft radius using a shortened 295-ft lattice boom.

"We're working on five different powerplants in the Ohio River valley," says William W. Glowacki, office manager for Marino Crane, Middletown, Conn., the crane owner. "These coal plants have been expanded over the years and SCR placement requires special reach. You might be handling only 200 to 250 tons, but it's a long way into the plant." Zimmer is owned by Cinergy Corp., American Electric Power Co. and Dayton Power & Light.

In tests earlier this year at Demag's Zweibrücken, Germany, headquarters, the 715-ft mast lifted 80 tons over a 354-ft radius, says Carl S. Marino, the crane company's president. Adds Greg Glidden, operations manager for general contractor Babcock & Wilcox Construction Co. Inc., Barberton, Ohio: "We don't need to build temporary docks because of its capacity and we could save about $1 million using this machine."

To assemble the giant crane, Marino workers used a 275-ton crawler crane. The largest single piece is 122,000 lb. Each track is shipped in four pieces and when assembled weighs 202,000 lb. It takes eight workers five days to assemble the machine. The heated and air-conditioned three-seat cab is a one-piece modular unit the size of a 40-ft box trailer.

Operations require one operator and a technical representative. The on-board computer supports two screens, one a touch screen to program operations, the other to monitor crane movements and load. It is powered by a pair of 500-HP diesels, running simultaneously. Because the unit is so large, three closed-circuit televisions are used for watching areas the operator cannot see. Cameras are mounted on the upper cab to monitor the drums and behind the machine to watch tail swing. Another watches the backmast.

The machine operates on wooden mats set on compacted and level ground. Marino will take delivery of a second machine in November. Another Demag CC-8800 is also in service in Canada. "We're a crane rental house and this machine costs in excess of $8 million," says Marino. He notes eight to 10 jobs are already booked.