The A6 “Autobahn” near Kaiserslautern is one of the most heavily used roads in the region. The large amount of traffic during rush hour was the main reason why it became necessary to expand the road from four to six lanes. This made the previous footbridge, which passed over the freeway and led to the nearby Caesar Park recreation area, too short – so it had to be replaced. During the weeks before the actual lift, the bridge sections to the right and left of the freeway had already been assembled and erected. To make it possible to place the bridge, the freeway was closed off in both directions between 6:00 PM on Saturday and 8:00 AM on Sunday. A perfectly scheduled plan was required for crane service provider RIGA MAINZ to bring the crane at the freeway, perform the lift, and clear the road during this short amount of time.

“This type of freeway lift is always complex and requires a perfectly coordinated team and an absolutely reliable machine. This is why we decided on the CC 2500-1 for this project – it’s easy to transport and set up, and it’s enormously powerful despite its compact dimensions,” explains RIGA MAINZ project manager Kathrin Marx. Only 24 trucks were needed in order to bring all the required components for the CC 2500-1, including the counterweights, to the site. Three days were scheduled for crane assembly, in which five RIGA MAINZ technicians set up the Terex crane right next to the freeway on Thursday with the support of an assist crane. The CC 2500-1 was fully assembled, with a 54-meter main boom and a 30-meter Superlift mast, on time on Friday. The only part missing was the 200-tonne superlift counterweight, which was mounted immediately before the lift at the closed-off freeway.

The CC 2500-1 was ready to start working on time at 9:30 PM.  With a counterweight of 120 tonnes on the superstructure and without a central ballast, it was perfectly stabilized for the lift. RIGA MAINZ general manager Uwe Langer then performed the lift himself. “Usually my son Tim would have been the one to operate this crane. He generously let me handle this lift with the CC 2500-1 though, so I could stay in practice,” he explains. After the Superlift counterweights had been mounted, the bridge was slung. However, since the steel structure’s center of gravity was not at its center, the rigging equipment was specifically selected to counteract the imbalance.

Once everything was in place, the CC 2500-1 lifted the bridge to a height of 10 meters, moved forward five meters under load, and swung the bridge into position.  Then, Uwe Langer reduced the main boom’s angle from just under 82° to 76° in order to increase the working radius from 11 meters to 16 meters. This placed the bridge exactly above the corresponding mounting points so that it could be perfectly placed on them. After this, the crane was brought to its starting position and then moved back five meters. The lift was completed as planned around 11:30 PM and the road was opened on time.

“The CC 2500-1 proved to be the right choice for many reasons, not the least of which were its compact dimensions and quick setup times,” explains general manager Langer, who already had another project planned for the Terex crane. After the CC 2500-1 was disassembled on Monday, it traveled directly to Ludwigshafen, where it would be lifting a 13-tonne reactor at a chemical plant.

The Terex CC 2500-1 is a versatile lattice boom crawler crane.  For instance, it can be converted from a standard crane to a special-purpose crane for wind turbine projects — and back — with only a few special components.  These special components include specially reinforced main boom segments and a rigid luffing fly jib (LF2) with a length of 12, 24, or 36 meters. This luffing fly jib was developed specifically for wind power-related applications.

 

The crane’s rated lifting capacity is 500 tonnes at a reach of ten meters; the maximum load moment is 6,140 mt. The carrier is available in its standard version with a Duo drive or optional Quadro drive. The basic machine, including all winches and the A-frame, can be transported within a 12 tonne axle load limit. This high level of flexibility saves time and money during transportation, setup, and disassembly, providing for a high level of cost-effectiveness.  Also, the time-tested Terex IC-1 control system, featuring remote radio control capabilities, makes it possible to operate the Terex CC 2500-1 easily, safely, and comfortably in virtually any operating conditions.