Potain Tower Cranes on UAE Skyline

Many of the new buildings and skyscrapers on the ever growing skylines of the United Arab Emirates are being built with the help of Potain tower cranes from regional Manitowoc dealer NFT.

Nabil Al Zahlawi, Managing Director for NFT, said his company has rented or sold cranes to companies working on a wide variety of projects in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and other emirates in the UAE.

"Construction activity in the UAE remains high with a large number of development underway. Projects continue to run 24 hours a day and so do Potain cranes. There are a number of ambitious projects taking shape and with demanding work schedules contractors are looking for powerful and reliable cranes backed by strong service," says, Mr. Zahlawi.

One project, the Capital Plaza development in Abu Dhabi, has six Potain luffing jib MR 160 C cranes on site. The cranes were all purchased from NFT by main contractor Arabian Construction Company. The cranes will remain on the project through the completion by the end of 2009 under the watchful eye of service engineers from NFT.

The 10t capacity cranes are all operating with their full jib complement of 50m and continue to climb throughout the development, with the tallest of the final hook heights reaching almost 200m. The cranes are handling steel rebar, formwork and other structural components on the development that will feature an office tower, a hotel and a residential tower.

Another project that relies on Potain luffing jib cranes for lift power is the Marina 101 supertall skyscraper under construction in Dubai. On this project, there are two Potain luffing jib cranes, an MR 160C and an MCR 225 A. The MR 160C is working at a free standing height of 54.2m with 45m of jib, while the 14t capacity MCR 225 A also has 45m of jib. As on the Capital Plaza development, the Potain cranes are lifting a variety of general building materials and are climbing as the project grows.

Main contractor, TAV Construction, chose to purchase rather than rent the cranes from NFT. Marina 101 will eventually reach a height of 412m and reach 101 stories. It will feature 324 hotel rooms and 506 residential units. When construction ends in 2010, it will be the second tallest residential skyscraper in the world. Only two meters taller, the Princess Tower, another skyscraper under construction in Dubai that also uses a Potain tower crane, an MR 160C, will be the tallest.

According to Mr. Zahlawi, NFT’s commitment to customer service is one of the cornerstones of its success. In this kind of environment, service becomes essential so it is a real focus of our business and is always a high priority for us. Of course the Potain name is well-known here and trusted, and since we have built our fleet of cranes over the past 12 years, we have been able to supply cranes quickly which is another key requirement for working in this market.