Construction cranes rise above Auckland city's skyline. Photo / Michael Craig
Construction cranes rise above Auckland city's skyline. Photo / Michael Craig
"It is the best view up the top."
That's one of the perks of the job according to CMP Construction crane co-ordinator Matthew Matangi - one of the hundreds of crane operators currently working in Auckland city.
Driving into Auckland it's hard to miss the sea of cranes rising eitherside of the motorway.
If you've ever wondered just how many there are in action, you're not alone.
The latest RLB Crane Index found there were 98 fixed cranes in Auckland as at February 25 - an all-time high.
City of cranes graphic
That's more than there are in any single city in the United States, with Seattle topping the US list at 59.
Although, Rider Levett Bucknall Auckland-based director Chris Haines, pointed out New York only measured Manhattan "whereas we measure from Manukau to Albany".
Construction cranes are dotted around the city. Photo / Michael Craig
Nationally there are 148 long-term tower, fixed and crawler cranes working as our cities continue to rise.
The number of cranes has risen by eight since the previous report in September last year.
Matangi is part of the five-man crane crew working on a new apartment building at 59 France St in Eden Terrace.
The crane on site is a Liebherr 224 electric luffing tower crane which has a 35m boom and a 36m of tower and can lift more than nine tonnes.
Construction cranes rise above Auckland city's skyline. Photo / Michael Craig
Matangi, who was originally a builder, fell into the job when the company he was working for closed down about 17 years ago and he has never looked back.
"I just love what I'm doing," he said. "Great views all the time. The best part of the job is when you finish the building. You walk away from here and you come back 20 years later and look at your building. That's the beauty of it."
It's hard to miss all the cranes in action in Auckland city. Photo / Michael Craig
But you can't be scared of heights to drive a crane, he said.
"The height is nothing to us. That's because we've been through it all the time."
Matangi said he had never seen so many cranes in Auckland before.
"They come down and they go straight up again - that's how busy it is now."
Some companies were running out of operators and dogmen, the people who attach the loads to the crane, he said.
To those considering a career in crane operating, "just jump in and have a go - you'll love it", he said.
Large tower cranes, like the one at 59 France St, usually arrive on-site in a number of pieces before being assembled with the help of mobile, often hydraulic cranes.
The sections are trucked in and the tower is craned into place piece by piece, ending with the cab, before finally the whole boom is lifted up and placed atop the structure.
In most cases cranes were made taller using a mobile crane or hydraulic cylinder to push the tower up from the bottom so another piece of the frame could be slotted in - all while using counter-weights to keep the structure balanced.
The largest of the country's cranes was Precinct Properties' Eenie, at almost quarter of a kilometre tall.
Cranes at work on the Sudima Hotel at the corner of Nelson and Wellesley streets. Photo / Michael Craig
The German Liebherr 357 luffing crane was initially only 97m tall but climbed to 225m as the new 39-level Commercial Bay tower neared completion.
Fletcher Construction last year built the super crane using a number of mobile cranes including New Zealand's largest hydraulic crane, the 450 Grove GMK7450.
Cranes work on the Pacifica Residential Tower on Commerce St. Photo / Michael Craig
As the building rose, the Eenie followed in seven increments.
NZ Crane Hire managing director Deane Manley earlier told the Herald the company had worked on many big projects in its 60 years but the fundamentals of all of jobs remained similar, regardless of the size.
Dozens of cranes can be seen around the Auckland CBD. Photo / Michael Craig
"Although cranes are still based on simple geometry and we are forever creating leveraged points of balance - which we've been doing ever since the Egyptians - a job like this highlights the need for careful planning, a high level of skill from the crane drivers and teamwork," Manley said.
Construction cranes around the Sky City Convention Centre and St Patrick's Cathedral. Photo / Michael Craig
