Sarens dismantles TBM

When MinskMetroStroy needed equipment to dismantle a tunnel boring machine that had been carving out a new metro station in the centre of Minsk, Belarus, they looked to Sarens for the solution.

Sarens presented the client with a Grove GMK6300L crane with full ballast, which was brought on site for about six weeks. Sarens had chosen the crane because it could manoeuvre in cramped conditions and confined spaces, but could also safely lift the 110t bearing. It was transported to the project site via five trailers, and it took the crew two hours to set up the equipment.

During the operation, two cranes were used to lift the bearing, which measured two metres high with a diameter of six metres. The Grove GMK6300L moved several times during the operation, as the two crane operators worked to disassemble and load out the tunnel boring machine. The main difficulty was the limited pit access they had, due to spacers, limited visibility, and the asymmetric centre of gravity of the loads. Responding to this unique set of challenges, the crane operators had to set different sling lengths for every load.