The project involved hoisting the scrubber, which was 109ft long and 19.5ft in diameter, from a barge docked on the Detroit River to the dock on Zug Island. Once landed on Zug Island, it will be transported to its final destination at the steel mill. The scrubber will be set vertically in position at the mill during a plant-wide shutdown this coming spring.
Knowing the details of the lift, JJ Curran deployed its Grove GMK6300L and GMK6400 all-terrain cranes. Both machines were purchased from the Riverdale, Illinois-based Manitowoc dealer Walter Payton Power Equipment (WPPE).
“The weight of the scrubber and 75ft distance from the center of the barge to the landing spot were definitely the biggest challenges,” said Chad McComas, crane operator and field engineer at JJ Curran. “An additional challenge was the 2 mph current of the Detroit River. We had to make the lift off the barge that was in the river.”