A compact crawler boom lift helps keep the foul poles freshly painted at the home of the Baltimore Orioles
May 25, 2015 - Equipment Rental & Tools
Many maintenance and engineering managers find it more cost-effective to rent aerial lift units and complete a number of unique tasks during the rental period than purchasing the units and keeping them in storage when not in use at their institutional and commercial facilities.
A compact crawler boom lift helps keep the foul poles freshly painted at Baltimore’s Camden Yards, home of the Orioles, a Major League Baseball team.
The poles serve two functions at the 22-year-old stadium. As transplants from its predecessor, Memorial Stadium, they bring more than three decades of history to the Orioles’ new home, and they help umpires determine whether a fly ball is fair or foul during games. For this reason, it is important that the poles are regularly painted and highly visible during day and night games. But the crisscross ironwork poles are 70 feet tall, which can present a challenge to those tasked with painting them.
Last year, Maryland Stadium Authority turned to Rentals Unlimited, Inc. in Clarksburg, Md., and the JLG® X700AJ compact crawler boom for maintenance crews to re-paint the poles.
Jim Joyce, sales manager of the equipment and truck rental company, says painting the foul poles challenged his company to recommend a piece of equipment with a footprint small enough to fit on the ball field’s warning track and offer enough reach to access the top of the poles.
“Running a machine across the actual playing field was out of the question,” Joyce says. “So, we measured the warning track and were confident the compact crawler boom would easily fit on the track and provide access to the poles.”
With a width of 3 feet, 3 inches, a 440-pound platform capacity and non-marking tracks, the lift proved a fit for the ballpark application, enabling contractors to apply two coats of yellow paint, top to bottom, on each of the two poles.
“Everyone who saw the machine before we put it to work was surprised by its capabilities,” Joyce says. “I think it was the boom’s size that threw them. It weighs just 7,000 pounds, but extends to 70 feet, and it’s easy to operate.”
The compact size and the lift’s vertical reach made it a welcome addition to the rental company’s fleet.
“The crawler is a unique piece of equipment,” Joyce says. “Its compact size means it’s easy to transport and once on the jobsite, it will go through 39-inch doorways and fit into other hard-to-reach areas. The machine is self-leveling, so if it’s on uneven ground, it will level itself. And, it’s able to climb up and down steps, with rubber tracks that won’t harm sensitive flooring or landscaping.”
In addition, the lift is environmentally friendly with an optional Lithium-ion battery for cleaner, greener operation. Dual power onboard — gas or electric engines, accompanied by an electric AC motor — are standard to reduce noise and emissions in public spaces. Other features include a hydraulic jib for greater reach, rotation of platform and a zero-turn radius with counter rotation.
