Crane painting

Gouweleeuw is an expert in the field of painting vertical transport equipment. For example, we paint mobile cranes, crawler cranes, tower cranes and associated boom parts. Painting cranes is a profession in itself and as an experienced crane painter we understand that! Because the basic machine and the equipment are separated from each other at the start of work and only come together again after the painting process, we are able to deliver machines that meet high quality standards. Our building is fully adapted to the painting of large and heavy equipment such as cranes. For example, we have a special 35-meter mast hall, where mast sections can be extended. This way we can paint cranes completely. Painting a crane takes an average of 12 working days with us. Because all processes take place under roof and we have our own means of transport (equipped for very heavy transport, among other things), we can realize an efficient process flow for all our painting work. In addition to the Dutch crane importers, dealers and many end users, our customer base includes crane manufacturers Liebherr, Tadano, Manitowoc, Spierings, and Kobelco. For these clients we paint mobile and crawler cranes in all sizes that are delivered all over the world.  

No job is too big for us! Thanks to the conversions of the past year, we can paint the largest cranes in our building. Using 2 overhead cranes (with a lifting capacity of 50 tons) in combination with our heavy forklifts and other means of transport, we are able to paint cranes above 1,000 tons. For our customer Wind1000 we painted a Liebherr LG1750. The machine was exposed to severe weather conditions, resulting in rust. The entire renovation project took place in just 20 working days for a job consisting of:

• Basic machine of 96 tons
• 200 meters of boom sections
• 20 pieces of counterweight (total weight > 245 tons)
• and other associated components

Spraying metallic colours on a crane requires a different preparation and spraying process compared to spraying a “normal”/non-metallic colour. Preparation for metallic paint Before spraying a metallic paint, sanding is done with a fine grain coarseness during the preparation. Sanding must also be done more carefully, which takes more time. When sanding with a coarse grain, sanding scratches can remain visible through the metallic paint. Spraying metallic paint Spraying metallic paints requires the utmost attention. It is very important that the metal particles incorporated in the paint are in the right direction. If this is not done, there will be a colour difference. Since cranes are sprayed in parts, all metal particles from the different parts must be in the same direction. This colour difference is most noticeable when spraying a silver metallic paint. Air pressure differences during spraying can also result in colour differences. Spraying with half a bar more or less can cause the metal particles to lie at a different angle, which gives a completely different result in terms of colour.  

By order of Spierings Mobiele Kranen (Oss – NL) we refinish cranes. For example, for Spierings we repainted a SK2400-AT7 for their client Jinert, located in Sweden. Spierings delivered the crane with accompanying parts to us, after which we painted the machine and components according to the high quality standards of Spierings and Jinert. After the paintwork was done, the crane was returned to Spierings, who then rebuilt the crane for transport to Sweden.