Construction in Tight Spaces
How to Skip the Crane and Squeeze a 230-Foot Boom Truck in a Narrow 10-Foot Glass-Walled Well of a New York City Landmark Building
What was the challenge?
The local construction contractor had to cover two glass sides of a 9-story residential dwelling with decorative grill façade panels. This building is adjacent and sits precariously close to the legendary glass IAC Building, known as "The Iceberg." The job site presented significant challenges with its narrow access alley to the building, fragile walls of glass on both sides of the alley, a busy city street, and seemingly impossible-to-reach spaces.
- The narrow, sloped garage driveway dividing the two buildings varied between a mere 10 to 22 feet wide. Neither the crane nor the man-lift would fit. It would be impossible to fit both.
- Each grill unit was 15 feet long and weighed about 100 lbs., making it hard to maneuver in such a tight space.
- A man-lift's typical jerky motions would increase the risk of scratching or breaking the glass. Setting up a JGL on the street would make it impossible to access the Iceberg-facing sidewall.
- Setting a JLG on the sloped driveway leading to the Iceberg building’s underground garage was not possible.
- JLG did not offer a boom long and maneuverable enough with the powerlifting attachments necessary for this job.
What was the solution?
What was the outcome?
An efficient setup enabled the work to start immediately and cover both sides of the building from a single parking spot. The entire job was projected to take two weeks.
The A-230, with its unprecedented maneuverability and 115-foot side reach, with a generous cage rotation of 2 x 80 degrees, lifted the panels without needing a crane, saving tens of thousands of dollars.
- 12-foot extra large cage
- 1,322 lbs lifting capacity for crew, equipment, and materials
- Side reach up to 115 feet
- Unique "under and up" or "up and over and back" access
- Jib length 31’6’’
- Parking in tight spaces 8’6’’ wide
- Cage rotation 2 x 80°
- Smooth controlled motions to move close to and around glass and fragile structures
Alpha Platforms has helped hundreds of teams like yours
Customer Testimonials
from Case Studies
Great experience! First time on the 300 foot boom for a Local Law Facade Inspection. Vadim, the operator, was in complete control of the equipment and made the whole process smooth. Flagmen secured the area below and allowed my Client to operate their hotel without any disturbance. Honorio Designs Architecture, PLLC
Excellent service, arriving on time every day, responsible with the load limit, very attentive to the lubrication and controls of the crane.
Excellent team working with us, always willing to do anything for the best
It was a pleasure to work with Alpha Platforms, the crew was skilled and helpful, the equipment was top-notch. Our installers appreciated the security of the platform vs working off of a swing stage, it made their job easier and more efficient. From the first meeting thru to the end of the work day everything ran as smoothly as it could. We will definitely be partnering with Alpha Platforms on future projects. Thank you for your help!
I had an emergency project on a 140' high voltage tower and needed Alpha Platforms next day. They were so helpful and expedient walking me through the entire process so I was comfortable with the deal. They showed up to my site next day and cut about 2 days off of the project due to the safety, speed and efficiency of their lift and operators. I'll never rent or hire another lift company. I would recommend Alpha platforms for all your high reach needs.
Jon told me that it was a pleasure to work with Alpha Platforms, the crew was skilled and helpful, the equipment was top notch. Our installers appreciated the security of the platform vs working off of a swing stage, it made their job easier and more efficient. From first meeting thru to the end of the work day everything ran as smoothly as it could. City Sign Service, Inc. will definitely be partnering with Alpha Platforms on future projects.
That is a fine piece of equipment! And the competent, professional group that goes along with it is just the cherry on top. I really appreciate everything. I'm sure we'll be able to use Alpha again in the future as we get these opportunities. In fact, it will only help our business knowing we have a safe, reliable solution to these over 50‘ height challenges.
We had an exceptional experience with Alpha! They are professionals, great operator team. Overall reliable, recommended will certainly return for my future needs hands down.
My company used alpha lifts to clean a 14 floor building and they were great. Very accommodating, always on time, and will work with you to get the job done safe and sound. The lifts they provide are state of the art and can pretty much reach any low rise building under 250 feet. I’d recommend them to anyone doing window cleaning or facade cleaning, or anything king of height access work!
We wanted to give it a try and see what this boom truck could do. We loved the idea of a wide basket that could reach up to 30 feet and get to the brick wall over the roof. The main reason we loved the truck was how it maneuvered the boom to lower the bricks inside a dumpster, which was located behind the truck. It saved us at least one extra day of work. It all went great.
Alpha has the most efficient and leanest site setup time I’ve ever seen. My brother, who is the top climber of our group, first struggled to understand how this cage could go around the tower better than the crane - and when it did the whole 360°, he became a believer. Also, each laborer said how incredibly safe they felt - very different from the small crane basket. We were able to secure and push back the panels in place without the basket ever moving.
The project was performed successfully, and we were really glad to have contactless means of reaching the building, as we all know that pipe scaffold might damage the structure, in this case, very very sensitive.
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