If you want to lift the heaviest objects on earth you won’t do it quickly!
Strand jacks have the heaviest lifting capability of all lifting devices. They also fit into a relatively small space when compared to cranes or conventional hydraulic lifting systems. The heaviest object jacked is said to be a 42,780 metric tons EXXON oil platform. It was raised 79 feet and it took 11 hours. If you think that’s slow, you need to understand how strand jacks work.
Strand jacks have a hollow hydraulic cylinder through which numerous parts of wire rope pass. Each wire rope passes through 2 clamps, 1 on each side of the jack. During lifting the top clamp locks and the bottom clamp unlocks. The jack extends to its limit of travel where the bottom clamp locks and the top unlocks so the jack can retract. This process is repeated over and over raising the load each time to the limit of travel of the jack. When multiple jacks are used they are synchronized by computer. Strand jacks can also be used for horizontal pulling.
Video Source: ALE
Video Source: Fagioli
http://sinoheavyindustries.blogspot.com/2013/06/ale-complete-world-record-jack-up-khl.html
http://www.fagioli.it/Pages/Strand_jacks_and_associated_power_packs.aspx?lang=en-US