Raimondi Middle East has successfully deployed the highest climbed luffing jib crane in the region, marking a significant engineering milestone for high-rise construction in the Gulf. The Raimondi LR213 is currently in operation at an impressive height of 322 metres, contributing to the build of a 75-storey premium residential tower in Dubai.
Erected on a steel undercarriage and equipped with a 50-metre jib and a tip load of 3.30 tonnes, the LR213 was brought in to replace an earlier crane after the structure had already reached 100 metres in height. The change required meticulous planning and a series of bespoke engineering solutions, particularly because the project had to work within the constraints of a pre-existing foundation.
“With the deployment of the luffing LR213, Raimondi continues to demonstrate a presence on Dubai’s most relevant jobsites,” said Wael Hasan, General Manager at Raimondi Middle East. “This development underscores Raimondi’s steadfast commitment to innovative engineering and providing tailored solutions for the most demanding construction challenges.”
One of the most complex aspects of the deployment was the limitation imposed by the existing raft foundation, which had strict base load thresholds. Unlike typical setups where the crane foundation is designed based on manufacturer specifications, Raimondi engineers had to reverse-engineer the installation to ensure the crane’s base reactions did not exceed the allowable limits.
To overcome this, the company utilised a 6×6 base and adopted a staged ballast removal strategy during the crane’s vertical progression. “At each climbing stage, we removed ballast blocks to maintain the base reactions within the studied load limits. This adjustment was critical for maintaining stability while adhering to the site’s structural limitations,” Hasan explained.
Further adaptations included a redesigned load curve engineered by Raimondi’s Applications Department. The new parameters were tailored to meet the tower’s final construction height and the unique lifting requirements at over 300 metres.
The crane was structurally supported by GR5S mast elements – two 11.8-metre sections combined with over 100 smaller 2.95-metre elements – and braced with 12 structural collars. However, one of the most technically demanding tasks was the collar positioning. This required several rounds of redesign and recalibration to accommodate site-specific requirements, with extensive engineering calculations needed at each stage.
“The complexities of this deployment demanded an extraordinary level of innovation and adaptability,” added Hasan. “From redesigning the base configuration to recalibrating the collars, every step of the process reflected Raimondi’s technical proficiency and commitment to excellence.”
With the main construction phase nearing completion, Raimondi has scheduled the crane’s dismantling in the coming weeks. The LR213 will be jacked down to 50 metres before being removed using a mobile crane, concluding one of the region’s most ambitious crane installations to date.
