Wilkerson enhances fleet with lattice boom crawler

Kansas City-based Wilkerson Crane Rental has purchased another Manitowoc MLC300 lattice-boom crawler crane equipped with VPC-MAX. Work has further driven the company’s acquisition of large Manitowoc cranes, thanks to a booming local economy, a new airport, data centers and a battery plant, coupled with the rise of wind farms and infrastructure projects, the company said.

A third Manitowoc MLC300 crawler crane with VPC-MAX and Wide Boom Plus further equips Wilkerson to compete for wind farm construction and maintenance jobs.

“Four years ago, we bought our first MLC300 with a wide boom and extended upper boom point,” said Jeff Holt, director of operations, Wilkerson. “This purchase was exclusively for wind farm work and apart from coming back for one three-month job, it’s been conducting maintenance on one wind turbine after another.”

Two years ago, the Wilkerson purchased their second MLC300. 

“This machine started out with wind work as well,” added Holt. “Since then, it has done tilt-wall work, as well as infrastructure jobs — where it’s really well suited. We can efficiently mobilize it and it’s perfect for a variety of jobsites. It’s currently on a long-term jobsite replacing a bridge over Table Rock Lake in Ridgedale, MO.”

The company’s third MLC300 is equipped with VPC-MAX and Wide Boom Plus.

“These two new attachments can be utilized on any of our three MLC300’s,” said Holt. “They make it possible to maintain up to 100-meter hub height wind towers. Since the purchase of these attachments, we have used them to perform complete rotor drops on 100-m wind turbines for the past five months. Now, this crane is off to work on a large tire plant in Topeka, KS, with main boom and fixed jib.”

Wilkerson’s latest 386 ton-capacity crawler, acquired from Kirby Smith, joined a portfolio that includes two other MLC300’s, along with a fleet of Manitowoc crawlers consisting of the MLC90-A, 999, 16000, MLC650 with VPC-MAX.