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  #401  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 1:53 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tornado View Post
I think the reason this one is so tall is because the operator needs to be able to swing the crane around without running into anything. If you look at the Thompson, that tower crane is only a few floors above. It won't rise again until they get to the 10th floor.
That's a possible explanation for this one, but it's still at least 100 feet taller than would be necessary to avoid the nearby buildings. And any good crane operator gets paid well to not bang into buildings anyway. Look at NYC or Chicago (or Philadelphia, Seattle, Boston, etc.) for examples.

I see it all the time in Texas. Initial crane set-ups are often 200+ feet even when they're working on the foundation. It seems like it could be dangerous if the right weather conditions were to come along and the crane doesn't have any lateral support (such as being fastened to the side of the rising building).

Does anybody know definitively why they do this?
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  #402  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 2:53 PM
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Originally Posted by pdg91 View Post
my first reaction to seeing this picture: "wow, what a cluster full of medium sized beige buildings..."
+1
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  #403  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 4:16 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JACKinBeantown View Post
That's a possible explanation for this one, but it's still at least 100 feet taller than would be necessary to avoid the nearby buildings. And any good crane operator gets paid well to not bang into buildings anyway. Look at NYC or Chicago (or Philadelphia, Seattle, Boston, etc.) for examples.

I see it all the time in Texas. Initial crane set-ups are often 200+ feet even when they're working on the foundation. It seems like it could be dangerous if the right weather conditions were to come along and the crane doesn't have any lateral support (such as being fastened to the side of the rising building).

Does anybody know definitively why they do this?
My guess is there's not much room + the floodgate project will have a crane up here soon
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  #404  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 6:06 PM
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I've always assumed it was the same everywhere else? Is that really not the case?

Undoubtedly, the reason is to allow the crane boom (arm) to swing freely (over) neighboring lots. It's especially necessary in a place like San Antonio with such narrow streets downtown and a considerable level of density in place.

Also, tower cranes are but one type of crane to use for high rise construction. Luffing cranes are used often where there are tight spaces. I remember one of the first luffing cranes I ever saw in Austin was working on a 427 foot building that was just 20 feet away from a 325 foot building. The luffing crane was used for the tower portion of the building, while a secondary tower crane was used to work on the podium. That crane appeared to be about 10 feet from the facade of the neighboring building about 100 off the ground.
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  #405  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 6:35 PM
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Here are some early crane shots for Central Park Tower in NYC. These are typical of New York... they're tall enough to build a few stories of the building, then they raise them 6-8 floors at a time as the building rises.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...91095&page=166


A couple months later, even the tallest one is only about 10 stories.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...91095&page=179
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  #406  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 7:03 PM
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Kevin’s point about street width might be important here. Many of the cities you’ve suggested as counterpoints have significantly wider streets than San Antonio (and other Texas cities).

San Antonio’s narrow streets are a vestige if it’s mostly uninterrupted design as a rural frontier outpost for 300 years. This was never designed to support the major city it is now.
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  #407  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 7:44 PM
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Also, the type of cranes in the NYC pictures are different from the cranes being used in SA in terms of what Jack is talking about.
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  #408  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 8:10 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JACKinBeantown View Post
Here are some early crane shots for Central Park Tower in NYC. These are typical of New York... they're tall enough to build a few stories of the building, then they raise them 6-8 floors at a time as the building rises.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...91095&page=166


A couple months later, even the tallest one is only about 10 stories.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...91095&page=179
Those are all luffing cranes. They can be lower because their booms don't move in the same way that tower crane booms do. They're able to gain the reach of a tower crane boom without being extended outward as far because of the angle of the boom.

Another building in Austin, 3rd + Shoal, that was just 20 feet away from its neighbor (which was also under construction at the time) used a luffing crane to navigate the tight spaces.

https://www.skyscraperpage.com/forum...ashton&page=35

Here's a screenshot showing the luffing crane being dismantled as the building had reached its vertical completion. You can clearly see that the crane was able to reach over the edge of the building and lower a crane piece down to the street even though the crane boom didn't need to be extended outward as a tower crane boom would be. The yellow boom on the right is working on another building that is just 20 feet away from 3rd + Shoal.

The screenshot came from the building's construction cam, which has since stopped updating since the building has completed its exterior construction, but you can still view the older images showing how the cranes appeared throughout the construction of both buildings. 3rd + Shoal also had a secondary tower crane atop the tower with a shortened boom that was removed before the building topped out.
https://app.oxblue.com/open/DPR/cielo

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  #409  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 8:22 PM
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I guess I never knew my cranes that well. Thanks for helping me understand.
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  #410  
Old Posted Jan 25, 2019, 11:39 PM
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There is a luffing crane being used at the project at Broadway and Austin Hwy.
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  #411  
Old Posted Jan 27, 2019, 3:45 AM
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I think tower cranes are less expensive than luffing cranes, but you can’t always use tower cranes because of the swing radius needed. Canopy crane had to be high enough to swing over lower roof of the Drury. There is a little trolley mechanism that moves back and forth along the boom to adjust where the load falls.

My understanding is that a luffing boom always has the load held at the end of the boom- there is no trolley that brings it back and forth. So you have to adjust the placement of the load by raising or lowering the boom, like you would with a fishing rod.

Probably in New York there are so many very tall buildings that it rarely makes sense to try to swing over the neighbors.

I think Floodgate will have to use a luffing boom.

Last edited by Txdev; Jan 27, 2019 at 3:48 AM. Reason: Typo
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  #412  
Old Posted Feb 6, 2019, 1:44 AM
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New webcam view posted - view is now from the Drury Plaza.
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  #413  
Old Posted Feb 6, 2019, 2:10 AM
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Great... we'll be able to watch it rise to the 13th floor, then they'll have to change to a third camera angle because half the floor gets cut off from view. Come on, people in charge of the camera, figure it out before you do it.
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  #414  
Old Posted Feb 7, 2019, 2:55 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JACKinBeantown View Post
Great... we'll be able to watch it rise to the 13th floor, then they'll have to change to a third camera angle because half the floor gets cut off from view. Come on, people in charge of the camera, figure it out before you do it.
I’m sure you’ll be shocked to learn that you aren’t the intended audience.

This is a good spot to document the next phase of construction, and be able to have a historical progress log of what was poured when, weather days, etc.

A cool time lapse video that can be used for marketing at the end is secondary.

JackinBeantown having an uninterrupted view is further down the list.

But I hear you. There’s just not a great other place to put it.
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  #415  
Old Posted Feb 7, 2019, 3:38 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Txdev View Post
I’m sure you’ll be shocked to learn that you aren’t the intended audience.

This is a good spot to document the next phase of construction, and be able to have a historical progress log of what was poured when, weather days, etc.

A cool time lapse video that can be used for marketing at the end is secondary.

JackinBeantown having an uninterrupted view is further down the list.

But I hear you. There’s just not a great other place to put it.
I disagree, there is several good locations to put the webcam and it never has to be moved. On top of the La Mansion, on top of the Holiday Inn, On top of the old Frost Bank, they are all far back enough to show the whole building as it is being built. Kind of like the camera on top of the Vistana showing the new Frost Bank. That one was placed good. The one on top of the Embassy Suits was really close to Frost Bank but it got the job done.
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  #416  
Old Posted Feb 8, 2019, 1:29 AM
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Originally Posted by The Model View Post
I disagree, there is several good locations to put the webcam and it never has to be moved. On top of the La Mansion, on top of the Holiday Inn, On top of the old Frost Bank, they are all far back enough to show the whole building as it is being built. Kind of like the camera on top of the Vistana showing the new Frost Bank. That one was placed good. The one on top of the Embassy Suits was really close to Frost Bank but it got the job done.
All of those places are too far away to see anything for the last 6 months anyway.

This is not a helpful view for construction documentation purposes.

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  #417  
Old Posted Feb 15, 2019, 6:33 AM
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[IMG]Hilton Canopy Construction by Raul Medina III, on Flickr[/IMG]
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  #418  
Old Posted Feb 15, 2019, 2:03 PM
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Thanks, Raul! Nice photo as always.
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  #419  
Old Posted Feb 15, 2019, 6:44 PM
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I'm so confused by this project. I would love to do a site visit
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  #420  
Old Posted Feb 15, 2019, 6:48 PM
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This site is soon going to similar to the end of the movie Batteries Not Included*

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