28.05.2021

‘Black Widow’ Spiders

The Louvre Museum in Abu Dhabi has taken delivery of three 29 metre Falcon 290 wheeled spider lifts that the customer specifically requested be painted black.

The Falcon 290 features a five section boom topped by double articulated jib to offer up to 15 metres of outreach with 100kg in the platform. Maximum platform capacity is 200kg at up to 13 metres, while the machine can also reach 4.5 metres below ground level. Weighing 3,750kg, it offers an overall width of just 800mm, a height of 1.98 metres and a stowed length of 6.3 metres.
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One of the three Falcon ‘black widow’ spider lifts

Its original spider outriggers allow set up on all manner of tricky surfaces including steps, slopes and disparate levels. The machines are electric powered, but a hybrid version is offered.

The new machines are also equipped with Falcon’s Remote Service Tool telematics. The GSM enabled system allows full monitoring, diagnostic analysis, trouble shooting and GPS ring fencing and is now standard on most Falcon models. With onsite training and handovers made difficult by the pandemic, Falcon Lifts now organises virtual training of operators and technical support by its technicians.
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The 180 metre dome

The new Louvre was designed by Jean Nouvel and covers 24,000 square metres, with 8,000 square metres of galleries, making it the largest art museum in the Arabian Peninsula. It also features a 180 metre diameter dome with a special web like construction that allows the sun to filter through. Cleaning and maintaining this structure is one of the key tasks for these three machines.
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Access to the dome’s internal surface has to be reached from some challenging set up points