New 150-ton crawler from Link-Belt

Link-Belt will introduce a new 150 US ton (136 tonne) crawler crane at the ConExpo show, March 22–26, 2011, in Las Vegas, USA. The 238 HSL is a new model that joins Link-Belt’s 138 HSL, 218 HSL and 298 HSL crawler crane range. Designed for the general contractor market, the 238 will see action in steel erection, bridge work, pile driving and more, the company said.

To make the 238 HSL attractive to general contractors, Link-Belt relied on customer input, the company said. The crane comes standard with folding upper guardrails and full-length right and left catwalks with grab handles. A rear-view, high-resolution camera and a color screen in the cab helps the operator stay up-to-date on jobsite conditions while an outside travel alarm helps keep the ground crew informed, the company said. The new HSL monitoring system allows the operator to set swing and other control parameters creating virtual walls with audio and visual alarms, Link-Belt said.

The heart of the 238 HSL is the 286-horse power (213.3 Kw) Isuzu 6HK1 engine with interim Tier IV DPF. Link-Belt tested this new after-treatment system to help ensure critical uptime while producing reliable, clean-burning power.

Hydraulic piston motors drive the swing and travel systems, front and rear winches and the boom hoist. Main winches come standard with power up, power down, with automatic brakes. Wet brakes for freefall on both drums are also standard to meet the demands for cranes in this class. The 238 HSL comes with a new foot-operated, all-hydraulic swing brake. This new brake system (devoid of mechanical or friction components) allows the operator greater control under a wide range of conditions, Link-Belt said.

The new crane offers ease of transport and has a modular counterweight removal system that lowers the counterweights to the ground from the remote control station, much like Link-Belt’s 218 HSL. The hydraulic cylinders detach in one piece with the base counterweight to reduce the weight of the main transport load. The upper counterweights consist of a 20,000-pound (9 tonne) “A” counterweight and six 15,000-pound (7 tonne) biscuit counterweights. Main counterweight release and engage pins simplify the assembly and disassembly processes. For quicker mobility, the 35,000-pound (16 tonne) side frames attach via hook and pin. The main load with base and self-erection equipment weighs less than 87,000 pounds (39.5 tonnes).
The main boom is 50 to 260 feet (79 to 15 meters)­­. A fixed jib is available from 30 to 80 feet (9 to 24 m) long and maximum tip height is 310 feet (94.5 m) with a 230- plus 80-foot (70 + 24.4 m) combination. A luffer will also be available. While there is an all new top section and base section, extensions are common with 238 HYLAB 5 sections.