'Goliath' & 'Samson' cranes at, Harland And Wolff, Queen's Island, Belfast, BT3 9DU

A pair of very large bridge cranes, each with a maximum lifting capacity of 840 tonnes, which were built in conjunction with a large dry dock between 1969 and 1972. The cranes each run on tracks and are aligned with the dry dock. The whole ensemble was designed as a ship building and assembly facility. The cranes were designed by the German heavy engineering company of Krupp. First built was that to the south west side which is known as Goliath was constructed in 1969, while the second which is some 10 m metres taller and standing at approximately 206 metres is Samson which was completed in 1972. When constructed these were believed to be the largest in the UK.