IN FOCUS / MANITOWOC WITH BORGER & BACHMANN
The Potain MCT 325 is designed to deliver easier transport and assembly, plus high efficiency and reliability on construction projects.
BORGER CRANES AND ACTIVE CRANE HIRE – 12 MONTHS ON Cranes and Lifting recently sat down with directors Shawn Borger and Hermann Buchberger to discuss their venture and the current state of the tower crane market. IT’S BEEN 12 MONTHS SINCE BORGER Cranes took a 50 per cent stake in Active Crane Hire and Hermann Buchberger was upfront in saying that the tower crane market has changed a bit over the last 12 months but was feeling optimistic about the future. “It’s come down a gear or two, but that doesn’t mean we won’t be back at full throttle again in 12 to 18 months,” said Buchberger. “The market has pulled back providing us with a chance to reposition our fleet. It’s fair to say we have to change and evolve to meet the challenges of the market. Up to six months ago, we needed every available hook in the air, now we can talk about possible trade-ins, maybe sell some of our older cranes and reinvest in what the market is asking for now,” he said. Shawn Borger recognises the changing demands of the market needs to be 48 / CAL November 2019
reflected in the mix of cranes in the fleet. “Over the last five to six years, you could have any type of crane in the fleet and it was always busy. But markets change and we have to ensure our fleet changes to meet new demands. Take the hydraulic electric luffing cranes in the fleet for example. Hydraulic electric luffers are a relatively new breed of tower crane to the market and they are flat out, whilst the utilisation of some of the more traditional cranes in the fleet is starting to slow down. “It’s the same with our mobile crane business. We have 25 Frannas in the fleet and it has quietened down in the 20t market, but for the 25t, and now the 40t machines, the demand has really taken off and they are flat out. The market responds to the different types of available technology,” he said. According to Buchberger, Borgers and Active saw the opportunities presented by
the luffing crane technology before other crane hire businesses. “At the moment, we are the only crane hire business operating hydraulic electric luffers but the followers are coming. It always happens, we saw the advantages presented by the technology and caught the first wave, but there’s always someone riding the wave after and it’s our job to ensure we continue to remain ahead of the pack,” he said. Borgers and Active Crane Hire recently ordered three units of the new Potain MCT 325 topless crane and Borger sees these as a positive addition to the fleet. “The hydraulic electric luffers have been a very good decision, and I think this 325 class will be perfect because it’s not a big heavy crane to erect, it’s easily transported and it’s a natural progression. We’re not out of our comfort zone with this model – it very much fits our fleet. We see it as a ‘beefed www.cranesandlifting.com.au
