Dan McInerney found this interesting article on the world’s tallest firefighting aerial:
There must be a good reason you’d be in an open air basket 367 feet above the ground. Besides hot air ballooning, you might be standing in a Bronto S-112 HLA, repairing hunchback damage atop the world’s most famous cathedral.
GIZMODO.com photo
Whether you’re comparing it to the Amiens Cathedral or the whole of the Fighting Irish—stacked atop one another—the Bronto S-112 HLA is still the tallest. Built by Finnish manufacturer Bronto, the S-112 HLA (High Level Articulated) holds the world record for highest reaching basket lift. And it doesn’t just go up. By optimizing its height-to-weight ratio and using a high tensile steel boom structure, it can bend the crane arm at a 90° angle, 290 feet up (~26 stories), and extend out to a working radius of 82 feet—roughly the length of three Minke Whales or two 72-person school buses. This allows crews to reach otherwise inaccessibly high areas, like the underside exterior of a wind turbine rotor.
Obviously, in order for a basket to rise that high, it needs an incredibly stable base. That’s why the lifting assembly is mounted on a Mercedes Benz model 76.60 9-axle commercial truck chassis, with five steered and four driven axles. The entire rig weighs a sturdy 75000 kg, about 82 tons or two Doosan Moxy Articulated Dump Trucks. It also uses an automatic levelling system that sets up in under a minute (because we need that cat out of the tree ten minutes ago!) and a Telecontrol system with an visual interactive display.
The S-112 HLA in action at the Inter-2010 in Leipzig:
Bronto Skylift’s High Level Articulated Range represents the ultimate in high rise rescue and fire fighting capability. It’s a perfect choice for fire brigades in metropolitan cities. ??Superior vertical and horizontal outreach at all heights, fast and safe operations and integrated corrosion-resistant waterway are the main advantages of the HLA range. Built on a standard truck chassis the HLA unit remains flexible and compact and can reach emergency sites using ordinary roads and streets. With the autojacking function, the unit is fully stabilized for rescue in just 40 seconds and the rescue proceeds quickly from the height of 33 floors. ??At the moment the range covers the working heights from 81 to 112 meters. ??Download the brochure
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#1 by tim Raymond on November 29, 2016 - 7:35 AM
Again for a third of the price you can get a 120′ height crane with a 10′ lg x 1500 lb capacity platform for rescue. or add high pressure water. http://www.reachallplatforms.com
#2 by harry on November 28, 2016 - 9:29 PM
well coral gables florida told me they have the tallest bronto in the united states and maybe Canada too coral gables is a 174ft boom I was told I cannot post pictures
#3 by tim Raymond on November 28, 2016 - 2:35 PM
The CraneMate in not set up for water only rescue at this time. Cranes can be set up for fluids as they do for airplane deicing equipment where they add hosing to telescoping cranes for high pressure deicer fluids so it can be done by existing OEM’s in that field.
#4 by Brian on November 28, 2016 - 2:21 PM
Does your cranemate allow for the flow of water. That is why it hasn’t been used in the fire service.
#5 by tim Raymond on November 28, 2016 - 11:57 AM
Here is something just as good or better for 1/3 the price of a Bronto or other very expensive aerial lifts. The CraneMate up to 1500 lbs capacity 10′ long 180 degree rotation attaches to most boom truck cranes 200′ reach +. Your call on how to spend your money. Even has a mini jib/winch crane option for platform that has a 11′ sheave height and 360 degree worm gear rotation. Definetly worth a look. http://www.reachallplatforms.com
#6 by Roger on November 28, 2016 - 5:47 AM
There is a 135 foot model in Queensbury, New York. They use it for the amusement park roller-coaster rides at six flags and for their hotels.
#7 by Bill Post on January 19, 2015 - 4:27 AM
I believe that one of the reasons that some places (such as Memphis,Melrose Park and Elmwood Park) may have ordered the 100 foot model is because they wanted an artculating Platform and since it was getting difficult to order real Snorkels ,as American La France had stopped marketing them, they decided to try the Skylift which is an articulated Platform.
Phoenix and several of it’s neighboring suburbs have 114 foot models and they seem to be working out okay. Phoenix did have a 118 foot Bronto that was damaged in a rollover accident several years ago. The Phoenix fire department has been known as a fire department that has been willing to try new things out such as having each Truck company assigned an “Alternate Response” vehicle which is known as a “Ladder Tender”. The Ladder Tender is really a medium duty Rescue Squad type of Vehicle which also carries some ground ladders on it and the Truck crew’s use them on many EMS and other non fire emergencies to reduce the wear and tear on the heavier Aerial Trucks.
While Phoenix proper runs with about 65 Engine companies they only run with 14 Truck companies and besides the Bronto Skylift the remaining 13 are all Tower Ladders. Two of them are rear mounts and 11 of them are mid mounts. There are very few fire departments which run all of their Truck companies with Aerial Platforms. That in a way explains why each “Ladder company” has a Ladder Tender also assigned to it
In most European and Asian countries ,Aerial Ladders and Aerial Platforms are used solely for the Aerial device and are really more of a specialty company. While in America and Canada the Ladder and Platform companies carry ground ladder and forcible entry ,ventilation and extrication gear which in some other countries are carried by Engines and Squad companies.
If you look at the photos of some of the Larger Bronto Skylifts in Europe and Asia you will notice a lack of ground Ladders unlike American Aerial companies. That might explain why E/One hasn’t been marketing the Higher Platforms that are used overseas.
As Chicago had been using Higher Aerial Ladders from 1960 to 2006 when Aerial Tower 1’s 135 foot Aerial Ladder was replaced with their current 105 foot Aerial Ladder, it would make perfect sense for Chicago to order either a 134 foot Bronto Skylift or similar 136 foot Gimaex Telstar that is marketed in North America by Sparten /Erv.
Here is link to some information on the Telstar Platform.
http://www.spartanerv.com/telstar/
#8 by Mike K on January 18, 2015 - 8:58 PM
The stabilizers on Melrose Park and Elmwood Park units are a 19 foot spread, pretty much useless on both towns residential streets. European studies have also shown that tower ladders significantly beat Brontos in set up and operation. Sounds like many of the EP FFs would have preferred a straight stick.
#9 by Tom Foley on January 18, 2015 - 5:14 PM
According to the agreement between E-One and Bronto, the tallest being marketed in the states is 134 feet. (Though other literatures says E-One is “not limited to” when they list the models.)
As you’ll see in the link below, they claim to have sold more than 100 of these units since 2000 in the states.
https://www.e-one.com/about/news/e-one-enters-exclusive-agreement-bronto-skylift
#10 by FARTIN' FRED on January 18, 2015 - 10:56 AM
Kinda surprised that Melrose & Elmwood Park would have one–2 cities not exactly known for their skyline.
Why aren’t they found in more skyscraper-abundant cities?
#11 by Shaan smith on January 18, 2015 - 8:55 AM
Has chicago fire department order new tower ladders yet
#12 by Bill Post on January 18, 2015 - 4:05 AM
Yes there are Bronto Skylifts in America. Melrose Park and Elmwood Park have them. . Phoenix Arizona and Memphis Tennessee also have one each.
In America they don’t really market the ones that go above 135 feet however.
I believer that there may be larger one in Canada however and Corpus Christi Texas did have large one at one time.
Here is a link to a previous post on the subject that I had contributed.
http://chicagoareafire.com/blog/2014/08/e-one-gets-bronto-skylift-products-back/#comments
#13 by Mike K on January 17, 2015 - 11:21 AM
Google “Unfall mit feuerwehr” videos and see a very new HLA (built for a power company fire brigade) on its side after taking a turn. The boom seems to be too top heavy . This has been a major issue among fire unions in Britain after a standard HLA was adopted, many rigs acquired, then in use they would tip over making turns over 15 mph. Many units were resold to Belgium and Holland with similar results (see “Geldrop Brandweer”) . And these were smaller HLAs. Granted the chassis have to be narrower due to European standards, but the fire management also wanted these rigs to be quints yet meet weight restrictions for highways. Eliminate pumps (and FFs).
Just think of the concentrated weight on those stabilizers, you really have to have a perfect knowledge of what is underneath each stabilizer.
#14 by David on January 17, 2015 - 8:29 AM
I think it’s sufficiently high to use parachutes to get down quickly, would be interesting to see this used at a real fire sometime.
#15 by Rich on January 16, 2015 - 9:19 PM
Are there in is the U.S.?