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For users & buyers of lifting equipment
Editorial team Ed Darwin - Editor editor@vertikal.net
New technology a blessing or a curse?
Associate editors Rüdiger Kopf (Freiburg) Alexander Ochs (Freiburg) Leigh Sparrow
New technology can be a blessing or a curse. It can revolutionise the way you do something, but it can also result in complete frustration and disrupt the very activity it was meant to streamline.
Consultant editor Mark Darwin
As an example I have just purchased a new tumble dryer, to replace a
Sales & customer support Pam Penny Clare Engelke Karlheinz Kopp
sensors, timers and fancy programmes. Unfortunately didn’t do what
Production/Administration Nicole Engesser
state of the art machine with a heat pump, condenser and all manner of it was supposed to do – dry clothes quickly and efficiently. Even when it did my wife complained that it took too long or - three times longer than the washing machine or simply decided that the clothes were dry when they weren’t – result a
Editorial data specialist Poppy Horne ph@vertikal.net
bottleneck!
Subscriptions Lee Sparrow
we spoke to the manufacturer, went on tech forums, but it seems these machines take longer, and
The manual was scrutinised for clues, the sensors and filters were checked, cleaned and rechecked,
Publisher Leigh Sparrow
the sensors can be fickle. So we shopped around for a new machine, the advice was – if you want a
Advertising sales UK-based Pam Penny pp@vertikal.net Tel:+44 (0)7917 155657 Clare Engelke ce@vertikal.net Tel:+44 (0)7989 970862 Germany-based Karlheinz Kopp khk@vertikal.net Tel:+49 (0)761 89786615
school vented dryers is limited these days, and they are blissfully cheap. So I held my nose and ordered
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cranes were hideously unreliable, Grove’s AT180 – a Gottwald rip off – was among the worst, at a time
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Benchoff decided that the technology was not fit for purpose and would never catch on, pulling Grove
dryer to be fast and reliable you need a conventional machine! Back to the future? The choice of old a brand new machine with a ‘C’ energy rating! My wife’s theory is as it only takes an hour it will be more efficient than the A++ model that takes over three hours. I’m not sure I buy her logic unless Volkswagen is testing tumble dryers these days? The lifting industry has also been dogged with technology introductions before they were quite ready. Thankfully most have become reliable and have changed the way we do things. The first All Terrain when the company had no experience of unreliability. Grove CEO Martin Benchoff ordered his engineers to buy a Liebherr LTM1025 to learn the German’s secret. The engineers soon reported that the Liebherr was almost as bad as the AT180 in terms of break downs. out of the market – only to be forced to buy back in by acquiring Krupp acquisition after All Terrains had become the cranes of choice. Other technologies that had had their challenges include work platform overload systems, electrohydraulic controls and please don’t talk to me about early boom pinning systems! In our tree worker survey (page 37) several respondents claimed that lift reliability has prevented their wider usage. Rental software has also had its challenges in the past, along with diesel emission
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technology. However I’ve yet to hear negative feedback on variable outrigger sensing and load chart/ working envelope calculation, even though it is highly sophisticated technology. While new technology can be hugely disruptive, it invariably comes of age and transforms our lives. I am pretty sure I’m not ‘ahead of the curve’ buying a ‘C’ rated dryer and look forward to replacing it with a reliable A+++++ model. Leigh Sparrow Comment and feedback is most welcome via post, email, fax or phone stating if we may publish them or not: editor@vertikal.net
ISSN: 1467-0852 © Copyright The Vertikal Press Limited 2020
October 2020 cranes & access
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