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lifting FOR A GOOD CAUSE: terex Cranes PROVIDES Challenger 3160 FOR COMMUNITY PROJECT in nierstein
ZWEIBRÜCKEN, July 11th, 2013– What was an insurmountable problem for the Catholic Youth Organization in Nierstein turned out to be an easy task for the Terex® Challenger 3160 all terrain crane: On June 15, 2013, a Terex team used the Challenger to lift an approximately 300-kilogram roof onto a barbecue pavilion that had already been waiting for a year to be put together outside the St. Kilian Catholic daycare center. The Terex team members willingly volunteered their free time for the weekend project, while the Zweibrücken site donated the desperately needed services of the crane for the lift.
The “lift for a good cause” was performed as part of the German Catholic Youth Organization’s (BDKJ) nationwide community improvement initiative, which took place from June 13th through June 16th, 2013 under the motto “72 Hours, Heaven Sends You.” The general idea was for the young people who participated to perform community projects within a period of 72 hours in order to address some of their region’s needs. The Nierstein Catholic Youth Organization was assigned the task of building two paved parking lots outside the Catholic daycare center, renovating the outside area, and building the barbecue pavilion. However, the last one proved to be a daunting challenge. “It was impossible for us to lift the roof, which weighed about 300 kilograms, and place it on the columns – we simply couldn’t do it without a crane,” explains Simon Djemai, the project leader at the Nierstein Catholic Youth Organization.
But where were they going to be able to get a crane on the spot on a Saturday afternoon? Mayor Thomas Günther, who was there to help the organization carry the project through to completion, could only think of one person who would be able to help: Christoph Göttlicher, Director of Research & Development at Terex in Zweibrücken, who calls Nierstein home. The Terex team member was quick to respond to the mayor’s request and proceeded to organize the desperately needed help by phone.
Lift under constrained space conditions
A few hours after Göttlicher had made his first call, Testing Mechanic Karl-Heinz Dillinger was already steering a Challenger 3160 into the Nierstein residential area where the daycare center was located. With him on board was Testing Engineer Marc Wiebeck, who had assumed project coordination duties for the lift. “We knew that the space at the site would be extremely limited, but our Challenger 3160 was the perfect machine for that – thanks to its compact dimensions, we were able to get the crane all the way to the right spot at the site and quickly set it up there with a standard configuration,” he explains. The lift was simple routine work for the Terex team: Karl-Heinz Dillinger operated the crane and lifted the 300-kilogram roof over and beyond the trees surrounding it and placed it on the support columns of the pavilion: “The trees kept me from having a clear line of sight, so I was completely dependent on my fellow team member’s radio instructions,” he reports.
Of course, the young people in charge of the project found the whole thing to be a great experience, especially since the crane operator let them get an interesting view of the inside of the Challenger 3160 crane’s cab. “We are extremely grateful to Terex and their people for helping us out right away with our project for free – without their help, we would never have been able to complete it within the required 72-hour window,” said Alexander Engel and Sebastian Bleser from the BDKJ Coordination Group at the Mainz-Süd deanery. Karl-Heinz Dillinger found the weekend assignment to be just as rewarding: “I thought it was really great to get the opportunity to cast our company in such a positive light. I would gladly give up another day off like that to do so again!”
Mayor Thomas Günther was also very happy with the whole thing: “The fact that this community improvement initiative was undertaken at the national level means that a lot of people are paying attention to it. And, of course, this also encourages companies to help out when they can. We already had a lot of supporters before, and Terex joined the ranks this year. That’s very important to us. Of course, I’d also like to take this opportunity to really praise the young people who volunteered for the project and worked extremely hard – 12 to 16 hours a day – to get it done on time.”
About the Terex® Challenger 3160 all terrain crane
The three-axle, 55-tonne capacity class Terex® Challenger 3160 all terrain crane has a 50-m single-cylinder telescopic boom and a maximum lifting capacity of 35.6 tonnes when working with a reach of four meters. The Terex Challenger 3160 all terrain crane can be operated independently by a single person while remaining under an axle load limit of 12 tonnes. For countries with a maximum axle load limit of 10 tonnes, the crane can set down its own counterweight, keeping the unit’s total service weight under 30 tonnes.
About Terex
Terex Corporation is a diversified global manufacturer of a broad range of equipment that is focused on delivering reliable, customer-driven solutions for many applications, including the construction, infrastructure, quarrying, mining, shipping, transportation, refining, energy, utility and manufacturing industries. Terex reports in five business segments: Aerial Work Platforms; Construction; Cranes; Material Handling & Port Solutions; and Materials Processing. Terex offers financial products and services to assist in the acquisition of equipment through Terex Financial Services. More information can be found at www.terex.com
