When client Techno Métal Industrie needed to perform a complex new bridge installation over the railway in Schieren, Luxembourg, they turned to Sarens for equipment and expertise. 

The main challenge the team faced was that the 700-tonne bridge would have to be installed over the railroad during a closure, but without ever entering the railway area. Furthermore, no rails or overhead lines could be removed, which meant that every piece of equipment had to be transported and lifted from the sides of the railway.

To perform this challenging lift, Sarens used 32 axle lines SPMTs and the Sarens CS250 climbing system on one side of the railway, and an LR11000 crawler crane and CS250 system on the other side. 

The LR11000 was configured with a 66-metre main boom and 430-tonne superlift. It took five days to build and was on-site for less than two weeks, including assembly and disassembly. One of the challenges the crew faced was assembling it on a very small footprint close to a downward slope.

With the equipment in place, the operation could begin.

To offload and transport the bridge, the crew first used two SPMTs to bring the bridge within range of the LR11000. Second, 25% of the weight was transferred to the crane, one set of SPMTs was removed, and the bridge was driven closer to the crane. Third, the SPMT was repositioned so that both the crane and SPMT had 50% of the weight. Next, the bridge was moved even closer to the crane, towards its final location. At the final location, the bridge was set down onto the CS250 climbing system and jacked down to the correct height. This final step was achieved over two weekends.

To lift the bridge, the crew started with 177 tonnes at 53,5 metres, booming up to 36,5 metres, where the load in the hook was increased to 352 tonnes at 36,5 metres by repositioning the SPMTs. Finally, the crane crawled backwards and boomed up to set down the bridge at a radius of 18 metres.

Throughout the installation, the SPMTs below the bridge had to be repositioned several times to their next support location. Every support location was carefully selected to guarantee that the load on the crane and SPMT remained below capacity.

Sarens is pleased to have helped our client complete a successful project, and proud to be leading the way in bridge installations of all varieties. Sarens is proving once again that no challenge is too high, too heavy, or too complex for Sarens ingenuity!