Rea Construction Co., with headquarters in Charlotte, NC, is one of the largest contractors in the Southeast United States. Specializing in highway construction and asphalt paving, Rea Construction recently put its experience and skills to the test with the demolition and reconstruction of two bridges in two North Carolina cities using new Link-Belt LS-108H II 50-ton (45 t) capacity lattice boom crawler cranes.
The two bridges span formidable obstacles; interstate I-40 south of Greensboro, and Sugar Creek, which spans State Route 49 in Charlotte. To tackle these projects, Rea is utilizing its new Link-Belt cranes. These cranes are already gaining a reputation among owners and operators as “bridge builder’s specials” because of their small “footprint” size, weight and ability to perform so many different functions.
“Quite often, a well-built bridge in need of replacement is harder and more complex to tear down and replace than it was to build it the first time. That’s where our new Link-Belt LS-108H II is an invaluable tool. In fact, the company just purchased two of the 50-ton conventional crawler cranes, and they have been at work every day since we took delivery of them,” said Rea Construction Foreman, Bruce Foote.
The primary function of the crane on both projects is heavy lift. In Greensboro, Rea is removing and salvaging 20, 13,000-lb. (5,896 kg), and 75-ft. (22.9 m) long steel girders.
The average lift, including the rigging, weighs 14,600 lbs. (6,622 kg). Next Rea will use the machines to drive piling for the new bridge foundation. Shortly thereafter, the cranes will lift forms and pour concrete. “Now that’s what I’d call an all-around machine,” added Foote.
Greensboro’s Merritt Avenue
Over Interstate I-40
The bridge in Greensboro carries Merritt Avenue over I-40. It has deteriorated to the point where it is more cost effective to replace it. However, demolishing and replacing a bridge is one thing, doing the job over a major interstate highway is something else entirely. Beginning in eastern North Carolina, I-40 cuts through the heart of the state and stretches across southeast and southwest of the United States, all the way to California.
“When it came time to remove the girders, one of the challenges was that we could work only at night. We could only close the interstate and divert traffic around the area from midnight until 5 am. That didn’t allow much actual working time,” said Foote. With the aid of the new Link-Belt LS-108H 11, Rea was able to remove five girders per span in one hour and 45 minutes. “We worked during the night for three consecutive evenings,” he said.
A particularly delicate operation involved the removal of the large steel girders from the bridge in such close quarters to the highway. Precise control, movement and expert planning are paramount in an operation this tricky.
“This new Link-Belt has several outstanding features going for it. The controls are very responsive; they have a real tactile feel. And the placement of the free fall button, right behind the controller, is a design feature I like,” said crane operator, Mike Kuester. “The machine’s onboard computer is another important element. It’s a 360-degree computer. Not only does it indicate safe over-the-end loads; it gives you safe over-the-side loads too.”
Route 49 Bridge Over Sugar Creek
The bridge Kuester is working on is in Charlotte. Built in 1940 with reinforced concrete, the bridge carries busy residential traffic over Sugar Creek in and out of Charlotte.
When half of the new four-lane bridge structure is built, the old bridge will be demolished and removed. The other half of the new bridge will then be constructed. The old bridge was about 140-ft. long by 40-ft. wide (42.7 by 12.2 m). One of the heaviest picks made using the LS-108H II while demolishing this structure was a 30-ft. by 4-ft. by 30-in. (9 m by 1.2 m by 76 cm) section of reinforced concrete girder which weighed 35,000 lbs. (15,875 kg).
“This Link-Belt crane is precisely what is needed on small bridge demolition, removal and replacement jobs that we do. Working from elevated roadways as we often do, we need a crane that is tough enough to get the job done. Yet it must be stable, maneuverable and light enough to work in some very challenging locations without getting in the way of other machines that are necessary, too,” said Kuester.
Both projects are expected to be complete in mid-2002.
