Once set up, the Demag duo was ready to lift the 328 ft. (100 m) long, 562 ton (510 t) steel pipe with a diameter of 15.8 ft. (4.84 m).
There are only a few jobs that require more than the enormous lifting capacity of a Demag CC 8800-1 with its standard configuration. Lifting a 328 ft. (100-m) long, 562 ton (510 t) C3 splitter tower at the Singapore Refinery Company propylene manufacturing plant was one such job. This is why crane service provider Tiong Woon configured its Demag CC 8800-1 with a boom booster, enabling the crane to carry out the demanding tandem lift together with a Demag CC 2800-1.
The fact that this was anything but a routine lift was clear from the get-go, as the CC 8800-1 had to first be set up for a test lift according to the local codes of practice. The test lift was carried out away from the actual work site with the support of Demag and in the presence of the ordering party.
The crane got the green light for the lift after successfully completing the test lift, and was then completely disassembled and taken with heavy goods vehicles to the "Merlimau Road" work site, where it was reassembled for the job.
Setting up the crane with its seven-part Boom Booster kit took the team, which consisted of six assembly technicians, six signal persons, and two supervisors, a total of five days — that is only one day more than the standard configuration would have taken.
"In order to speed up the process, one part of the team took care of assembling the base crane, while the other part took care of setting up the Boom Booster," said Tiong Woon's Deputy Chief Executive Officer Michael Ang.
He added that the reasons for assembling the CC 8800-1 that effectively were its ease of assembly and his team's experience, skills and outstanding training. Moreover, the team benefitted from the fact that the available space at the work site was extremely generous.
Perfect Demag Duo Teamwork
For the CC 8800-1 primary crane with the boom booster kit, Tiong Woon chose a BSFVL configuration with a main boom length of 334.6 ft. (102 m) plus a fly jib of 39 ft. (12 m) mounted at an angle of 14 degrees. Meanwhile, the required Superlift counterweight came in at 441 tons (400 t).
For the Demag CC 2800-1 assist crane, the company chose an SSL configuration with a main boom length of 137.7 ft. (42 m) and a Superlift counterweight of 110 ton (100 t).
Once set up this way, the Demag duo was ready to lift the 328 ft. (100 m) long, 562 ton (510 t) steel pipe with a diameter of 15.8 ft. (4.84 m).
The biggest challenge was to bring the massive steel structure from a horizontal position to a vertical position on the Demag CC 8800-1's hook in a controlled manner by using a tailing operation. To do this, the CC 2800-1 first picked up the splitter column from its end in order to then lift it to a height of 1.6 ft. (.5 m). At the same time, the CC 8800-1 lifted the load from its other end while the CC 2800-1 slowly moved forward until the splitter column was hanging from the CC 8800-1's hook and the assist crane was no longer under load. After the team released the CC 2800-1's slinging gear, the CC 8800-1 brought the splitter column to the required position in order to set it down exactly at the intended point.
Exacting Lift Requirements
"Tandem lifts are already complex operations in and of themselves, but when you add a heavy load with this type of dimensions, things get even trickier," Ang said. Accordingly, the job was meticulously planned. Moreover, a technician and a mechanic were there at the work site, ready to fix any issues that might have occurred.
This conscientious preparation was an important reason why the Tiong Woon team was successful in carrying out the project to the customer's full satisfaction, and a few days earlier than scheduled to boot.
"We were at the work site for a total of 69 days with our cranes and 25 people on average. The fact that the weather conditions were ideal and, especially, that the two Demag cranes have such incredible performance characteristics played a crucial role in enabling us to finish the project earlier than planned — this goes particularly for the CC 8800-1 with the boom booster, which was an absolute requirement in order to be able to lift a load with these dimensions and this weight," Ang said.
"Needless to say, we were also tremendously thankful for the support provided by the Demag team during the test setup. It served as further confirmation of the fact that we can always rely on Demag for fast and expert help with any issues at any time, which is why we've always been happy with the service they provide."
This also is one of the reasons why the company decided on its two Demag cranes for this job.
For more information about The Tiong Woon Group, visit www.tiongwoon.com
For more information on Demag cranes, visit www.demagmobilecranes.com.
This story also appears on Crane Equipment Guide.
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