MLC300 used for Illinois bridge replacement

While planning the project—which involves the construction of two 958.5ft-long outer plate girder spans and a central 546ft-long tied-arch span—Kraemer realized that a barge-mounted crane solution would be necessary to access the lifts for the tied-arch span.

The company sought consultation from Dawes Rigging & Crane Rental, member of the ALL Family of Companies, about a crane that could be mounted on the tight working quarters of a barge, but still provide high-capacity lifts to great heights to aid in bridge construction.

Dawes suggested the MLC300, which could automatically adjust its counterweight to provide greater stability for each lift, all from a smaller footprint than previous-generation cranes.

 “With the VPC, the MLC300 is always finding a new center of gravity based on the load that’s on the hook,” said Patrick Shea, project manager for Kraemer. “This crane has helped us to achieve almost zero list while working on the barge, keeping every lift level while minimizing the barge’s rotation. And the VPC saves space, too—most crawler cranes with the required length of boom would not have fit on the barge in the first place.”

The MLC300 is now erected on a barge in the Mississippi River measuring 70ft by 195ft. It’s lifting 76USt arch rib sections to a height of 165ft using 295ft of main boom, all from a 100ft radius. To meet the lift radius and pick weight requirements on the job, Kraemer’s MLC300 had to be outfitted with its optional VPC-MAX attachment, which enhances the crane’s capacity and enables additional boom and jib length combinations.

Construction of the $80 million Savanna-Sabula Bridge replacement began in March of 2017 and is on schedule for completion in 2018. The new bridge will span 2,463 ft in length and will meet modern-day deck-width standards to improve the flow of two-lane traffic.