Elevating Cab Raises Telecrawler Game

To improve accessibility to the Flemish capital Antwerp and its port the government of the Belgian region of Flanders has developed the ‘Mobility Master Plan 2030’. An important part of this project is the expansion of the Oosterweel Link highway, which will complete the ring road around Antwerp. It is one of the largest construction sites in Europe.

As part of the first phase of the project the connecting road to the E17 highway will be completely rebuilt. The Belgian construction company Artes, as part of the commissioned joint venture Rinkoniên, is responsible for the construction of the new bridges and is using one of its 50 tonne telecrawlers from Sennebogen for this purpose.

The Sennebogen crawler is equipped with a cab that can be elevated hydraulically by up to 2.70m; this brings advantages for handling the formwork and rebars for which the crane is used. It gives the operator a total viewing height of up to 5.40 m; so they always have an optimum view of the working area and can lean back easily in the seat at a maximum angle of 30° – an ergonomically ideal posture for permanently concentrated work with maximum precision. Additional headlights on the basic boom and on the upper carriage, roof windows made of bulletproof glass, and a programmable work area limitation that monitors the angle of rotation and boom radius also ensure maximum safety on the site.

Artes has several Sennebogen cranes with elevating cab in its fleet and values the elevating cab. Since it is involved with a loty of hydraulic engineering, it often works along waterways. “We specifically equip our telescopic cranes with the elevating cab because it increases productivity and safety,” says Artes technical superintendent at, Wouter Van De Putte. “The crane operator can see when something needs to be lowered to a deeper point, for example when building a quay wall, and can then react directly instead of using walkietalkies or hand signals. But also on other construction sites in civil engineering, such as these bridges, the overview is much better for the crane driver, so they can work faster and safer.”

Tandem Lift In Bridge Replacement

As part of a complex infrastructure project two Liebherr LR 11000 crawler cranes performed a spectacular tandem-lift bridge replacement project in northern Germany. An old concrete pipe bridge over the A42 autobahn needed to be replaced with a modern steel construction. The bridge connects refineries in the region with the Bottrop tank farm, crossing both the A42 and the River Emscher.

A total of seven Liebherr cranes were used on this complex project. WASEL deployed the two 1,000-tonne crawler cranes for the bridge lifting operation; a 100-tonne mobile crane, an LTR 1220, an LTM 1230-5.1, an LTM 1250-5.1 and a 450-tonne crane were also used for auxiliary and assembly work.

In the first phase of the project two new bridge segments, each weighing 220 tonnes and measuring 71 metres in length, 7 metres in width and 6 metres in height, were delivered by ship along the Rhine-Herne Canal. The two LR 11000 cranes then lifted the segments in precisely coordinated tandem lifts off the ship and placed them on a prepared pre-assembly area.

The particular challenge with the first segment was to guide it between the two crawler cranes with centimetre precision in order to place it in the intended position. For the second segment, it was sufficient to set the crawler cranes back around ten metres and place the component directly in front of the crawler cranes with pinpoint accuracy.

Crane operator Florian Lauschke had to perform the lift from the ship with a wide working radius. The LR 11000 models used were built in the SL11DBV setup configuration with 96 and 84-metre boom lengths. They worked with 130 tonnes of central ballast, 250 tonnes of turntable ballast and 450 or 340 tonnes of derrick ballast.

In the second phase of the project the existing pipe bridge had to be dismantled and the new steel bridge slotted into place. To do this one of the two LR 11000 cranes was dismantled at the pre-assembly area, transported around 1,000 metres via the A42 and reassembled on the motorway, now with a 72-metre main boom. The old pipe bridge comprised four concrete sections; in dismantling it steel corsets were used to avoid structural damage during the lifting operations.

At the same time, the new bridge segments were transported on SPMT travel gear via the closed-off A42 to the installation site, ready for direct lifting and insertion.

Project manager Viktor Hein from WASEL praised not only the lifting capacity of the Liebherr crawlers but their agility, too. “The operator- and assembly-friendly design meant that we were able to relocate one of the two cranes in the shortest possible time from the pre-assembly area to the assembly area via the motorway. The fact that the cranes were able to lift loads of up to 240 tonnes precisely and safely, even without any ballast pallet, significantly accelerated the speed of the project. The project was completed two days earlier than the five days that had been planned.” This was extremely satisfactory given that a major aim was to close off the motorway for as short a time as possible.

Fast Mover

Two 120-ton Link-Belt Cranes TCC-1200 telecrawlers are expediting the build of a new $44 million bridge expansion project in lower southeast Texas near the Mexican border.

The revamped structure, the new Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge, is over a mile-and-a-half long and will serve as a major trade hub between Mexico and the United States, doubling the capacity of the existing four-lane structure. The IOC Company, L.L.C. of Edinburg, Texas, is using the Link-Belt telecrawlers to form pile bents, ranging from 11–40 feet tall, as part of the first phase of construction.

IOC crane operator Max Gutierrez praises the telecrawlers’ manoeuvrability, as they frequently move half-a-mile between partially made bents. “They can pick and carry forms, rebar cages, and other equipment easily between the 60-foot-spaced lined columns with the boom retracted and no need for outriggers,” he says. “This means I can work fast and efficiently. I usually work at 85ft of boom, at boom angles between 40 to 45 degrees. Since the area is a bit congested, with this type of machine, I can swing around and track sideways and track backwards easily. I can pick and carry with no problem.

“The TCC-1200’s Link-Belt Pulse system displays its parameters, counterweights, boom length and more, is simple to set up and is really easy to understand. The parameters are stored automatically, so when you arrive in the morning all you have to do is switch on; you do not have to enter them all again.

And the cameras mounted on the boom and on the chassis mean that I can see all around the crane while I am tracking forward or backward or sideways. It is so much fun to operate these cranes and manoeuvre around the jobsite. It’s something very special.” Gutierrez said.

Multiple Crawlers Used In Louisiana

Link-Belt crawlers are assisting a $360 million bridge replacement project near Shreveport, Louisiana. The Louisiana Department of Transport and Development announced that a temporary trestle replacement bridge neared completion earlier this year. This will then allow construction of the new Jimmie Davis Bridge.

The design-build contractor, Primoris Heavy Civil of Spring, Texas, is working on drilled shafts, concrete pile delivery, drainage upgrades, and a significant amount of earthwork on both sides of the river as part of the new bridge build.

Cranes at the site include a 250 ton capacity 298 HSL lattice crawler, a 200 ton 248 HSL lattice crawler, and a 120 ton TCC-1200 telescopic crawler with a five-section boom.

The purpose of the project is to double the vehicle capacity of the river crossing and support economic development through the efficient movement of people and goods.

The new bridge is anticipated to open by early 2027.