City Cranes
The term "City Crane" refers to a small 2-axle mobile crane which is designed to be utilized specially in compact areas where regular cranes can not venture. These city cranes are popular alternatives for use within buildings or through gated areas.
During the 1990s, city cranes were originally developed in response to the growing urban density in Japan. There are always new construction projects cramming their ways into the cities in Japan, making it vital for a crane to have the ability to maneuver through the nooks and crannies of Japanese streets.
Essentially, city cranes are small rough terrain cranes which are built to be road legal. These cranes are characterized by having a 2-axle design with independent steering on each axle, a short chassis, a slanted retractable boom and a single cab. The slanted retractable boom design takes up much less space than a comparable horizontal boom would. Combined with the independent steering and the short chassis, the city crane is capable of turning in tight spots which would be otherwise unobtainable by other crane designs.
Conventional Truck Crane
Conventional truck cranes are mobile cranes with lattice booms. This boom is much lighter boom than is found with a hydraulic truck crane boom. The multiple sections on a lattice boom could be added so that the crane can reach over and up an obstacle. Traditional truck cranes need separate power to be able to move down and up and do not raise and lower their loads utilizing any hydraulic power.
Manitowoc built the very first ever Speedcrane. It proved to be a successful machine although a lot of adjustments had to be added later on. Manitowoc hired Roy Moore as a crane designer to help streamline the design. He understood the industry was changing towards internal combustion engines from original steam powered means and designed his crane to change with the times. The Speedcrane was redesigned for a gasoline engine.