Mexican Wind Farm Receives First Manitowoc 16000 with Wind Attachment

Enlarge Image Manitowoc 16000 at work on Mexico wind farm

July 1, 2011 — A Manitowoc 16000 fitted with a new wind attachment is erecting 204 turbine towers on a wind farm at La Ventosa, in the Juchitán District of Mexico’s southern state of Oaxaca. This is the first 16000 with a wind attachment in Mexico. A Manitowoc 18000, a Grove GMK5220 all-terrain crane, and five Grove rough-terrain cranes are also on site. The cranes all belong to contractor Sectrol DHP, which is working for main contractor Acciona. Sectrol DHP is erecting 68 towers in three locations in La Ventosa. Sectrol DHP began work on the tower erection phase in March. The project is expected to finish in August. The nacelles, which weigh 65-metric tons, are the heaviest elements. The towers are 80 meters high. When complete, the farm will generate around 306 MW of energy; enough to power 16,000 homes in the Oaxaca area. The Manitowoc 16000 has a maximum capacity of 400 metric tons, and a maximum reach of 96 meters. The wind attachment increases the reach and capacity of the Manitowoc 16000 at short radii, particularly useful in wind turbine applications.

At an 18-meter radius, the wind attachment lends the crane a capacity advantage of 49 percent over a standard 16000. For this project, the 16000 was configured with the wind attachment and a 91-meter boom.

“We do a considerable amount of work in wind energy, and we’ve seen size of wind turbines evolve,” said Jorge Fernandez, commercial manager for Sectrol DPH. “The new wind attachment helps us offer our clients a greater scope of services—including the installation of larger turbines—with the same crane.”

According to Jerry Maloney, global product director for Manitowoc’s crawler cranes, the 16000 is popular for wind turbine work. “Approximately 85 percent of the Manitowoc 16000 cranes we build are used in wind power work. The cranes are quick and easy to erect and disassemble, and are equally easy to transport.”

By not requiring any modifications to the base crane, Manitowoc made it simple for customers to take advantage of the new attachment.