Clydebank's Titan Crane named 'engineering landmark'

The Titan Crane at Clydebank has been officially recognised as an engineering landmark on par with the Eiffel Tower.

Built between 1906 and 1907, the crane was used to lift heavy equipment at John Brown shipyard on the River Clyde.

The Grade A-listed crane opened as a visitor attraction in 2007, with a lift up to its 150ft high jib platform.

Four leading engineering groups have designated the crane an International Historic Civil and Mechanical Engineering Landmark.

The award is from the American Society of Civil Engineers Board of Direction and is endorsed by the American Society for Mechanical Engineers, the Institution of Civil Engineers and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

It is the first time all four engineering institutions have come together to designate a landmark.

Previous recipients of the title include the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Thames Tunnel in London.

The Titan will become the fifth "engineering landmark" in Scotland along with the Forth Rail Bridge, Forth and Clyde Canal, Craigellachie Bridge in Aberlour and the Caledonian Canal.

The Titan was built at a cost of £24,600 by Sir William Arrol & Co and completed in 1907.

It is all that remains of the John Brown shipyard site in Clydebank.

The Titan helped with the construction of warships and vessels such as the Lusitania and the QE2.

During WWII, it survived the Clydebank blitz unscathed despite being a target for German bombers.

A £3m restoration in 2007 saw a lift installed to bring visitors up to its jib platform as the structure was refurbished as a tourist attraction and shipbuilding museum.