Select Plant electric crane ready to start on site

Select Plant Hire has received the UK’s first Liebherr LR 1250.1 electric crane.

Select is the second company in the world to introduce the 250-tonne capacity lattice jib model into its fleet, following its worldwide launch last year.

The arrival of the ‘unplugged’ crawler marks the beginning of a planned fleet of battery-powered machines for Select in its drive towards zero emissions.

In so-called ‘socket operation’, the crane’s performance is identical to the diesel-powered version and in unplugged mode can operate for a full shift under normal operating conditions.

Alternatively, the batteries supply sufficient energy for the erection of the main boom with luffing jib and travel over a distance of approximately 650 metres. The crane can operate fully when connected to a conventional electric supply or be recharged in 4.5 hours.

Alex Warrington, Business Unit Leader, commented: “We identified crawler cranes as an area of potential for electric machines and are proud to partner with Liebherr whose exciting product development has made this a reality. The industry is placing a much greater value on sustainability, energy consumption and zero carbon targets.”

Image caption:

Pictured at the handover at Liebherr-GB, Biggleswade are, left to right, Select’s Paul Griffin, Alex Warrington and Eddy Carr, Richard Everist and Mark West of Liebherr, Steve Bradby of Select.