Vinci Building has spent £2.5m to buy two tower cranes for its Sheffield Forgemasters project – the first fully owned by the contractor.
The Wolff 355 B Luffing jib cranes, manufactured by Wolffkran in Germany, are all-electric and have a lifting capacity of 28 tonnes.
Vinci Building will use them at the £138m Sheffield Forgemasters project, a 13,800 sq m building that will house the UK’s largest open-die forging facility for defence and commercial work.
The cranes will be used in the construction of the press pit foundations and a 40m-high superstructure. They will also help to erect gantries and chimneys, and to redistribute materials.
A week-long journey
The first Wolff 355 B travelled for almost a week across mainland Europe from the Wolffkran plant in Heilbronn, southern Germany. Setting it up took around 48 hours.
The second crane will arrive on site in mid-2025, and both will be in use until early 2026.
Chris Winspear, Vinci Building regional director, said: “These cranes are a first for us – we own them outright and the arrival and set up of the first Wolff 355 B is a major landmark for Sheffield Forgemasters and particularly for us at Vinci Building. It marks an investment in the project and our business.
“We are optimistic for 2025 and this all-electric crane proves our intent to deliver on major schemes of benefit for the UK economy and to do it in as sustainable a manner as possible.”
