Scania has entered the Guinness Book of Record as the noble steed of the world’s tallest concrete pump, built by Chinese concrete machinery manufacturer Zoomlion and their Italian subsidiary Cifa.
The pump has a reach of 101 metres with a 7-section boom. To cope with the weight, a 7-axle chassis was required, powered by a 620hp V8.
Altogether, the vehicle is 18.5 metres long. The pump structure is mounted on a ‘normal’ truck chassis, which means that it complies with the maximum dimensions and footprints imposed for road transport.
Scania has delivered trucks to Zoomlion since 2008. The truck chassis have been increasingly customised to facilitate and streamline Zoomlion’s work of fitting superstructures.
“Scania’s strong position as a supplier of trucks to the premium segment for concrete pumps, represents a success for our entire organisation’s cross-functional working method,” says Peter Sjöblom, managing director of Scania China.
The trucks supplied to Zoomlion are typically fitted with Scania 6-cylinder engines and the pumps are mainly used in the construction of high-rise buildings and bridges.
In order to ensure high uptime, Scania China has trained personnel at Zoomlion’s own service workshops and has also established special teams of service technicians that can assist in the event of operational disruptions.
“Pump 101” will be exhibited at the Bauma China 2012 trade fair for construction machinery to be held in Shanghai November 27-30.
It is currently at the prototype stage, and is due to undergo a detailed structural and functional analysis, involving very strict tests. The target market for this product is primarily China, but there may also be demand from Europe in the future.
