Compu-Crane Case Study

ALL's CompuCrane Takes the Guesswork Out of Spec Work - Creates Long-Term Value for Its Partners

Bidding a construction job is never easy. A general contractor needs to budget for the trades they handle in house and then seek competitive bids from subcontractors.

A subcontractor for the recently completed West 3rd Street Lift Bridge in Cleveland, Ohio, needed to hire an erection crew as part of their bid process, and ALL Erection & Crane Rental's computerized crane selection and simulation software made partnering with ALL a comfortable decision.

Rich Randall, ALL Erection & Crane Rental Corp.'s territory sales representative, worked closely with each of the contractors, participating in numerous detailed scope review meetings so that he could better understand each contractor's unique approach and how each wanted to utilize the cranes.

After taking measurements and surveying the surrounding area, ALL was able to continually input all possible scenarios into their CompuCrane software. Ultimately, Rich was able to find the crane that met all of the contractors' requirements for the bid and present the information to the estimators and then to ODOT (Ohio Department of Transportation).

"The estimate was precise and the subcontractor landed the bid," said Randall. "Companies who retain our equipment and operators get the added benefit of our software program, making their bidding process much more successful."

The software is an internal sales tool used by ALL Erection's application engineers when a client calls needing a crane. The service is free and helps ensure an accurate, safe, and cost-effective pick -- well practiced through the software before undertaking work at the actual site.

The database-driven software is preloaded with specifications, capacities, and load data for every crane in the ALL fleet-North America's largest inventory. Then, based on user input, the CompuCrane simulation software recreates the environment of the lift to help customers properly plan their lift day, increasing safety and reducing cost.

Randall is careful to point out that the software is a valuable asset but hardly compares to ALL's understanding and practical application of value engineering, combined with daily practical experience with erection and lift engineering.

For more information, contact ALL Erection and Crane Rental Corp., 7809 Old Rockside Rd., Cleveland, OH 44131. Phone: 216-524-6550; fax: 216-642-7611.