Equipped with platforms extending more than 180 ft up and rugged running gear that is fully drivable at that height, the Genie machine, introduced at the Bauma exhibition last year, and the JLG unit, which debuted at Conexpo this year, have rapidly advanced the capabilities of telescopic boom lifts. Three decades ago, most machines could reach only 80 ft, but electronic controls, high-strength steel and other hardware have pushed the limit to extremes.
Terex unit Genie and Oshkosh unit JLG set a high bar. "When we got to 120 feet, people thought technology couldn't support it to go any higher than that, and, here today, we are at 180 feet," says Guy Ramsey, publisher of trade magazine Lift and Access. Ramsey organized the event late last month and invited ENR to help run tests, such as verifying specifications and timing cycles—with the full cooperation of the manufacturers.