In order to reach all corners of the job site, Erix Cranes equipped two Link-Belt lattice crawler cranes with either a fixed jib or luffing attachment.

Erix Crane & Rigging, Inc. (Erix Crane) of Denver and Colorado Springs, Colorado specializes in precast panel, tilt-wall, general contracting and steel erection. All facets of their business were put to the test recently constructing a new indoor football facility at University of Colorado Boulder in Boulder, Colorado.

The uniquely designed 120,000 square foot indoor practice facility, planned as a zero-energy building, will have a two-story parking garage directly below the multi-purpose practice facility. Over 80,000 cubic yards of rock and dirt were excavated to make room for a massive 128 foot high steel frame structure with an architectural precast foam-core concrete exterior.

In order to reach all corners of the job site, Erix Cranes equipped two Link-Belt lattice crawler cranes with either a fixed jib or luffing attachment.

The 250 ton (226.8-mt) 298 HSL utilized 180 ft. of main boom and 60 ft. of fixed jib, offset at 15 degrees while a 300 ton (272.1-mt) 348 H5 was equipped with 150 ft. of luffing boom and a 100 ft. luffing jib. “This is a crane dependent building construction with only one of four sides available for crane work,” explains part-owner of Erix Crane, Sam Lowry.

The roofline of the building is formed by the two cranes lifting twenty-six, 137 ft. (41.7 m) long half-trusses mated to form thirteen roof trusses. Once the two half-trusses are bolted together, in air, the 348 H5 holds the 80,000 lb. (36 287.4 kg) framework while the 298 HSL places structural steel supports that anchor the truss into position.

“During a truss lift, the 348 and 298 are usually just far enough from each other for adequate clearance – as close as five feet. My left track of the 348 and his right track on the 298 are pretty close,” says 348 H5 operator Mike Yearous. “We have to have both cranes positioned just exactly right with the 348 back farther than the 298. Once the 348 gets the final truss into position, the 298 needs the space to walk forward to lift its end of the truss,” explained Mike Yearous.

Since jobsite access is restricted, Erix Crane maintains a lifting schedule that erects steel at the furthest point from the base of the 348 H5 first. As steel erection is finished, the outside panel work that wraps the building must also be completed before moving the cranes, slowly working their way to closer radius lifts for both structural steel and precast. Lowry noted that a definite advantage to having the 348H5 is its capability and capacity with a luffing jib - not all luffing cranes have that ability off the luffer jib.

“Probably the biggest kicker is the maintenance. The maintenance on these Link-Belts is minimal. They use less fuel, and we don't have any problems with them. We are a small company, but when I call Link-Belt tech people, they treat me like a human being, and make sure I get taken care of. I just don't have the resources or back-up that a big company might, so it is important to me to get the help I need, and Link-Belt with its dealer (Power Equipment) gives me that support.”

Link-Belt Construction Equipment Company, with headquarters in Lexington, Kentucky, USA, is a leader in the design and manufacture of telescopic boom and lattice boom cranes for the construction industry worldwide.

Complete crane specifications are available at www.linkbelt.com.

Today's top stories

Growing Interest in Construction Careers Among Younger People Means Jobs Filled, Deadlines Met

Larry Young Paving Tackles Grade-Separated Interchange in Texas

Caltrans, Crews Working to Repair Highway Landslides

FIRSTGREEN Industries Launches ROCKEAT Electric Skid Steer Loader

'Tiltrotator Effect' Increases as Energy Consumption Goes Down

VIDEO: Birmingham, Ala., Awarded $14.5M Fed Grant to Revitalize Its 'Black Main Street'

Pettibone Celebrates 75th Anniversary of Cary-Lift

Fay Preps Way for Pittsburgh International Airport Modernization Project