As part of Freo Group’s vision to be the best crane hire company in Australia, Freo Cranes has extended its ever growing heavy lift fleet in recent months. Freo’s have recently taken delivery of the first 350 tonne capacity Liebherr LTM 1350-6.1 all terrain crane to arrive in Australia. Executive General Manager Cranes and Logistics, Dean Short says “Not only does the LTM 1350-6.1 represent the latest in all terrain technology, it bridges the gap between the 250t and 500t Liebherr already in the fleet”. In addition Freo Cranes has also purchased a third 500 tonne capacity Liebherr All Terrain Crane.

In alignment with client requirements, Freo has also strengthened its crawler crane fleet with the addition of a 750t Manitowoc 18000 crawler crane. This crane operates with up to 97m of main boom and 121m of fly jib, and with the MAX-ER counterweight system the capabilities are even further enhanced.

Freo Cranes now has one of the most comprehensive heavy lift fleets in the country including:

• 1 x Manitowoc 750t Crawler
• 3 x Liebherr 500t All Terrains
• 2 x Liebherr 350t All Terrains
• 3 x Liebherr 250t All Terrains
• 4 x Liebherr 200t All Terrains

“There are not too many crane companies in Australia that can match our impressive and extensive heavy lift line-up and that is partly due to the fact that we do not wait for a contract opportunity to purchase a crane, we buy our cranes to attract the opportunities.” Dean Short said.

When asked what crane Freo would be buying next, Dean Short only has this to say “Well you will have to wait and see but be assured it will be bigger and better than anything Freo’s have seen before!”

Another important milestone was achieved in our journey towards safety excellence. The company gained certification of our Occupational Health and Safety Management System to AS/NZS 4801:2001standards.

Freo’s are fully committed to continuous improvement throughout all levels of our organisation including senior management who have a strong involvement in workplace safety, development of safety systems and employee training.

It was an exceptional safety effort that was the key to the following achievements in 2010:

• In excess of 1,260,000 man hours (564 days) without a Lost Time Injury (to 30/07/2010) for all FGL WA Operations.
• 2 Years LTI free at the Pluto LNG Project Karratha (in excess of 700,000 man hours) and Contractor of the month status June 2010 for superior Safety Performance.
• Recognition for attaining high standards in Health, Safety, Security and Environmental management systems during the 2010 BP Accredited Contractor Program (within Top 5% of all contractors nationally working at BP Australia sites)