McKeil's barge Huron Spirit is equipped with a telescoping boom. I assume this was done to maximize reach, while minimizing the amount of deck space the boom takes up on the barge.
http://www.mckeil.com/sites/default/fil ... _sheet.pdf
Have any other Great Lakes vessels had telescoping booms? I guess that the shuttle booms are telescopic, but they don't rotate and elevate like the boom on the Huron Spirit does.
I suspect my question may be addressed in Buckets and Belts: The Evolution of the Great Lakes Self Unloader by William Lafferty and Valerie van Heest, but I honestly haven't had a chance to read my copy yet.