Jekko crane from HLI Rent plays key role at Barcolana

The Barcolana is regarded as the world’s largest international sailing regatta. Held in Italy’s Gulf of Trieste, the event holds the world record for the largest sailing race, which included 2,689 boats.

To support this massive sailing extravaganza, each year the seafront is reborn as the Barcolana Village, a series of exhibition stands, hospitality areas and other support activities.

Jekko SPX532.2 with vacuum lifter moving glass panels at Barcolana (Photo: HLI Rent)

To help with construction of the temporary village, a Jekko SPX532.2 from HLI Rent was drafted in to help with assembly work. This included hanging glass panels, railings and metal pergolas to build viewing areas for spectators.

The area presented particular challenges, with limited space and uneven ground, all while multiple teams were working at the same time.

Simone Ravalico, technical sales specialist at HLI Rent explained more. “To handle the different operations, the SPX532.2 was used both with the hook for steel structures and [also] with a vacuum lifter for the installation of more than 30 glass panels, always in combination with the hydraulic jib.”

Adjustment of the jib offset angle proved particularly useful as this allowed adaptation to the working geometry of the buildings, guiding materials at height through partial structures.

A further challenge were the Bora winds, a typical feature of Trieste. These demanded careful consideration, especially when moving large sheets of glass.

The combination of the SPX532.2, dedicated attachments and the experience of HLI Rent’s operators made it possible to speed up operations. This was particularly important for an event with a fixed opening date that could not be postponed.

At the end of Barcolana, the same SPX532.2 will return to the Trieste waterfront for dismantling of the village.