Bridge construction in Scotland
In Edinburgh (Scotland), three Liebherr 630 EC-H 40 Litronic top-slewing cranes are involved in the Forth Crossing Bridge construction. This 2.7 km long bridge will be the world’s longest cable suspension bridge with three pylons. In addition to the crane delivery, Liebherr is responsible for their overall development. This includes a special design for the high wind speeds which prevail in this region, as well as the required calculations for the guying on the pylons and the loads for the caisson foundation.
630 EC-H 40 Litronic top-slewing cranes climb on bridge pylons to a lifting height of 212 m.
630 EC-H 40 Litronic climb on bridge pylons
Each of the three tower cranes stands on a client-constructed steel foundation known as a caisson, on the bridge pylons in the water. The tower cranes were installed using a barge, on which a crawler crane stood.
Bespoke configuration
Previously, the individual crane parts were assembled on the mainland. 630 EC-H 40 Litronic tower cranes are ideal for such applications. The cranes are equipped with 36m
jib and lift up to 18 tons at the jib head. At a radius of up to 18m, the cranes are designed for a 40ton capacity.
High loads - high handling capacity
This configuration enables a particularly high handling capacity with heavy loads. This lifting capacity is also supported by the 110kW high performance hoist gears from Liebherr which are in use on the project, and which guarantee fast lifting speeds.
Cranes stand on special steel foundations and reach a total height of 235 m
Hight under hook up to 212 m
To adapt to the high wind speeds resulting from the open North Sea location, the cranes are specified according to wind zone “D 25” and configured with the particularly stable 500 HC tower system. The cranes are stationary mounted on 10 metre 630 EC-H undercarriage. In total, just five guying systems on the pylons are needed to reach the 212 metre hook height.
Competence center
The special guying systems were manufactured by the client, on the basis of designs and structural calculations provided by Liebherr.
