Global Crane’s fourth 700-tonner: lift planning notes for wind and civils engineers
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on The Construction Index
30 Second Briefing
Global Crane Services has taken delivery of its fourth Liebherr LTM 1650-8.1, an eight-axle, 700-tonne telescopic crane with boom options from 54 to 80 metres, a 90-metre luffing jib and Y-guying giving a 152-metre hook height and 112-metre working radius. Based at Aberdeen, the unit will support heavy lifts for Global Wind Projects and civils, port and offshore work, with operators trained by Liebherr Great Britain. The company now runs more than 70 cranes and has ordered two 250-tonne LTM 1250-5.1s for delivery later this year.
Technical Brief
- Acquisition is Global Crane Services’ fourth LTM 1650-8.1, standardising heavy-lift fleet configuration and spares.
- Crane is deployed across Global Crane Services and Global Wind Projects under Global Port Services Scotland Ltd.
- Familiarisation and driver induction were delivered at the Aberdeen depot by Liebherr Great Britain’s training services.
- Two additional 250-tonne Liebherr LTM 1250-5.1 mobiles are on order for delivery this year.
- Seven new mobile cranes between 70–250 tonnes were added to the fleet in the previous year.
- Current fleet exceeds 70 cranes, almost entirely Liebherr, including two 750-tonne LG 1750 lattice-boom truck cranes.
Our Take
Within our Infrastructure coverage, very few UK-based fleets combine multiple 700‑tonne class all‑terrains with 750‑tonne lattice truck cranes, so Global Crane Services’ mix in Scotland positions it for heavy offshore-wind components as well as refinery and port shutdown work without relying on cross-border plant moves.
The concentration of high-capacity Liebherr units in Aberdeen suggests Global Crane Services, alongside Global Wind Projects and Global Port Services Scotland Ltd, is gearing for more integrated EPC-style packages where lifting, port handling and wind installation are bid together rather than as separate contracts.
Across the 636 Infrastructure stories in our database, most fleet expansion items focus on 100–300‑tonne machines, so the decision to keep adding 700‑tonne and 750‑tonne cranes signals confidence that North Sea and Scottish energy-transition projects will sustain a steady pipeline of ultra-heavy lifts later this year and beyond.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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