Crawler Crane
The mobile crawler crane is specific crane designed with either a lattice boom or a telescopic boom. These move upon the crawlers tracks. Because this crane is self-propelled, it can move around certain work sites without the need for much set up. Because of their huge size and weight, crawler cranes are are hard to transport from one location to another and are fairly expensive. The crawler's tracks offer stability to the machinery and allow the crane to work without using outriggers, although, there are some models which do use outriggers. Moreover, the tracks provide the machine's movement.
Early Mobile Cranes
Initially, the first mobile cranes were mounted to train cars and move along specially built short rail lines. Once the 20th century arrived, the crawler tractor changed and this brought the introduction of crawler tracks to the agricultural industry and the construction business. Not long after, the crawler tracks were adopted by excavators and this further showcased the versatility of the machine. It was not long after before manufacturers of cranes decided that the crawler track market was a safe bet.
The Very First Crawler Crane
In the 1920s, Northwest Engineering, a crane company in the USA, mounted its first crane on crawler tracks. It described the new machinery as a "locomotive crane, independent of tracks and moveable under its own power." By the mid-1920s, crawler tracks had become the chosen means of traction for heavy crane operations.
The Speedcrane
Developed by Ray and Charles Moore of Chicago, Illinois; the Moore Speedcrane was among the first to attempt to replicate rail lines for cranes. Made within Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Speedcrane was 15 ton, wheel-mounted, steam-powered crane. During 1925, a company called Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co, from Manitowoc, Wisconsin recognized the tracked crane's marketability and potential. They decided to team up with the Moore brothers to be able to produce it and go into business.