Terex Cranes made a big splash last month with the introduction of two new cranes at a product launch event held at the company’s production facility in Waverly, Iowa. “The RT 100 and BT 26106 represent the first totally new cranes the company has released in eight years,” said Scott Smith, director of crane sales for the Americas. More than 150 people, including distributors and customers from six countries, attended the event. In addition, it was hinted that at least two more new cranes will be introduced at ConExpo in March 2011.
Although both cranes are significant, the fanfare was as much about Terex’s strategic decision to focus on its crane business. Perhaps best described as a melting pot of legacy brands, the new Terex Cranes presents a much more united front.
“We intend to build a stronger franchise under the Terex name,” said Rick Nichols, president of Terex Cranes. “As part of this initiative we will aggressively refresh all our product lines by bringing together our crane teams and cultures.” The public face of this is a new website, www.terexcranes.com, which merges 12 different sites into one. Internally, during the last year, all Terex facilities across the globe have eliminated legacy names on their buildings, some 1,000 team members will receive “Proud to be Terex Crane” training, and paint schemes are being transitioned to be consistent for all cranes.
The RT 100, a 100-ton rough-terrain crane, is a good example of Terex’s collaborative design approach. The crane was designed from the ground up to meet customer needs in both the U.S. and Europe. Jointly developed by U.S. and Italian engineering and sales departments, the crane is produced in Waverly, Iowa and Crespellano, Italy.
In addition, the 174-foot boom has French influences, explained Francois Jourdan, global marketing vice president. According to the company, it is the longest boom on this class of crane. “It’s capable of reaching a maximum tip height of 183 feet by telescoping the six-section main boom without fitting extensions,” said Marco Gentilini, vice president and general manager.
All told, the new Terex RT 100 certainly draws on its heritage derived from former legacy brands, including Koehring, Bendini, PPM, P&H, but according to Jourdan, “Our future is Terex.”
While the company is making an effort to present a unified image, it won’t completely turn away from the use of its legacy brands when it’s beneficial to do so. The new 26-ton boom truck introduced at the event is the first in a redesigned series called the Super Stinger. The series name is a nod to one of the company’s legacy brands. “Super Stinger is a reflection of our heritage,” said Dave Stevenson, vice president and general manager.
According to Smith, the 26-ton boom truck took just six months to get to market and over the next 12 months the company expects to add more models to the Super Stinger line. The crane features innovative K-style front outriggers, which deliver 360-degree operation without the need for a front jack. Capacity over the front averages 80 percent of the over-the-rear value. In addition, its four-section keel boom measures an impressive 162-foot tip height when equipped with a 47-foot jib. The boom head and jib come from the RT 230. In addition, use of high-grade steel reduces machine weight and improves the capacity of the deck. (For more information see Crane Hot Line, June 2010, page 22.)
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