Spierings SK487-AT3

The Spierings SK487-AT3 City Boy marked a significant milestone for Spierings when it was officially released in 2017. Although the City Boy name had appeared earlier as a conceptual project, this model represented a complete and ground-up redesign of the original City Boy concept that Spierings first revealed around 2010 and later showcased again during the company’s 25th anniversary celebrations in 2012. Rather than being a simple evolution, the SK487-AT3 City Boy was reengineered to address the changing realities of modern urban construction.

The driving force behind the City Boy’s development was the increasing number of cities worldwide introducing or planning restrictions on diesel- and petrol-powered vehicles. In response, Spierings positioned the SK487-AT3 City Boy as what it described as the world’s first hybrid mobile tower crane. The crane was designed to minimize local emissions and noise while maintaining the performance and flexibility expected from a mobile tower crane. The hybrid concept allows the crane to operate electrically on site, drawing power from batteries or external electrical supply, while retaining a combustion engine primarily for road travel and energy management.

Mounted on a compact three-axle carrier, the SK487-AT3 City Boy is optimized for access to dense city centers, narrow streets, and restricted construction zones. The reduced axle count and compact dimensions make it particularly suitable for urban logistics, where maneuverability and compliance with weight and access limits are critical. Despite its compact footprint, the crane offers lifting performance suitable for a wide range of urban construction tasks, including residential buildings, mixed-use developments, and refurbishment projects.

The crane is equipped with a lattice jib designed for trolley operation, providing a generous working radius for its class and the ability to handle typical urban construction loads efficiently. At short radii, the SK487-AT3 City Boy delivers strong lifting capacities, while at larger radii it maintains practical load values for formwork, reinforcement, and prefabricated elements. By operating the jib at steeper angles, the crane can achieve increased hook heights, allowing it to service multi-storey buildings despite its compact base.

As with other Spierings mobile tower cranes, the SK487-AT3 City Boy features a fully automatic, one-man erection system. Erection is carried out at the push of a button and follows a tight, controlled assembly curve, enabling setup in confined spaces with minimal surrounding clearance. This fast erection process reduces setup time and labor requirements, an important advantage on short-duration or frequently moving urban projects.

All crane working motions—including hoisting, slewing, trolley travel, and erection—are electrically driven. In electric mode, the crane operates with very low noise and zero local emissions, making it especially suitable for city centers, night work, and environmentally sensitive areas. This operating concept directly reflects the City Boy’s mission to meet future urban regulations without sacrificing crane performance or productivity.

The crane is supported by a four-point hydraulic outrigger system with automatic leveling and electronic inclination monitoring, allowing flexible setup even on uneven or restricted ground. The operator’s cab is designed to tower crane standards, offering good visibility, ergonomic controls, and integrated monitoring systems that provide continuous feedback on crane configuration, load status, and operating limits.

Overall, the Spierings SK487-AT3 City Boy represents a forward-looking approach to mobile tower crane design. By combining compact three-axle mobility, fast self-erection, and a hybrid power concept aimed at reducing emissions, it was specifically engineered to meet the challenges of modern urban construction. Its 2017 launch confirmed Spierings’ early vision of cleaner, quieter cranes and positioned the City Boy as a response to the growing global movement toward low-emission and diesel-restricted city environments.