The Evolution into Hydraulics
The Second World War forced much of society to improve overall resourcefulness. In this specific period in history, the development and design of cranes changed significantly. These industrial equipments changed the face of the construction industry.
The first hydraulic crane was made in the year 1946 by crane manufacturer F. Taylor & Sons. This very first model was not able to slew or luff and was only used by the company. When it joined with Coles in 1959, this unit opened up the doors for a 50 and 42 Series. A Morris W.D. chassis is what the mobile hydraulic crane was first placed on.
The hydraulic crane by Taylor & Sons operated on a boom powered by a hydraulic pump and cylinders which were lowered and lifted by a hydraulic pump. When the business was unable to use army vehicles as chassis for the machinery, they began production for designing their own mobile hydraulic cranes.
These very first machines gained a lot of praise and were heralded as amazing machinery. They were supposed to be capable of rebuilding all that was damaged by bombs in the war. The cranes were responsible for helping put together nations, cities and individual houses. Hydraulic systems became designed more and more complicated. The gear and pump systems can be powered while the trucks remained immobile. Businesses like for example Hydrauliska Instustri AB made the first truck loader crane appearance on the market.
In the year 1952, the A2 crane was introduced. This particular model was a crane mounted on the back of Chevrolet truck. It was complete with a hooked winch and hydraulic lifting cylinders. This specific loader crane started a huge trend within the industry. A company located in Bremen, called Atlas Weyhausen began manufacturing similar versions of this machine.
Immediately after, cranes were becoming more advanced. Different companies and manufacturers making the winches developed accurate telescopic booms, and the hydraulic pumps were improved and using different materials in order to change the way the crane was developed.