The Daily Reporter – WI Construction News & Bids Wisconsin's Construction Authority
Broadwind Heavy Fabrications’ 140-ton Navy Crane is this year’s Coolest Thing Made in Wisconsin. (Photo courtesy of Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce)
A 140-ton Navy Crane from Broadwind Heavy Fabrications in Manitowoc is this year’s Coolest Thing Made in Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce and Johnson Financial Group announced the winner on Thursday at the annual WMC Business Day held at the Ingleside Hotel in Pewaukee.
After nearly 210,000 votes were cast over multiple rounds, the 140 Ton Navy Crane was crowned the winner. Nearly 70,000 votes were cast in the final round of the contest. Other finalists included: Caterpillar Global Mining in South Milwaukee, Mercury Marine in Fond du Lac, and Kwik Trip in La Crosse.
The 140 Ton Navy Crane was engineered, fabricated, machined, painted, assembled, tested and delivered by the Broadwind Heavy Fabrications and Konecranes partnership. The 2.7 million-pound crane shipped on Memorial Day weekend by barge to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. About 5,000-6,000 Wisconsin residents watched the crane depart the Manitowoc River and enter into Lake Michigan to start its 2,100-mile journey through the Great Lakes Waterway and into the Atlantic.
