The tautline cableway differs from the aerial tramway in that its operation is limited to the distance between two towers (not more than 3,000 ft or 915 m apart), it has only one carrier, and the traction cable is reeved at the carrier so that loads can be raised and lowered. Also, the tautline cableway is not restricted to a fixed position; the towers can be mounted on trucks or crawlers, and the machine then can be shifted across a wide area. The machine will hoist loads from any point under the span, convey these loads in either direction, and lower these loads at any point under the span. By using movable towers, an area of any length can be traversed. Equipped with slings, this machine will pick up and carry unwieldy loads of every kind; then by exchanging the slings for a skip, it will handle large chunks of ore, stone, etc., or it can be equipped with a dump bucket to handle any bulk material, including semifluid mixtures.