Priestly Demolition Inc based in King, Ontario, CANADA dismantles a pedestrian bridge as part of ongoing construction project in downtown Toronto.
Priestly purchased the Link-Belt 8090 Series II approximately four years ago, and currently is the only rough terrain crane in the company’s fleet.
Priestly Demolition used its Link-Belt 8090 Rough Terrain Crane to help remove a pedestrian bridge that spanned the Keating Channel in east Toronto. (Photo: Derrick Van Der Kolk PAVIC)
Dallen Rands, branch manager at PDI National Cranes expects to add more RTCs to the Priestly fleet soon.
Removing the bridge presented a unique challenge, as the structure was only accessible from one side of the channel. To safely complete the demo, Priestly used a the RTC-8090 to assemble a nine-piece floating barge in the channel.
“We could only work from the west side, that’s why using a crane to facilitate the work made it more doable. It made it schedule friendly and made it safe for the work,”
Sections of the barge measured between 20 and 40 feet, and weighed 15,000 to 32,000 pounds, making the 90-ton rough terrain crane ideal for the job.
Priestly Demolition’s Link-Belt 8090 Rough Terrain Crane. (Photo: Derrick Van Der Kolk PAVIC)
“We had to offload the barges and stage them, then move the crane to pick them and put them in the water,” said Dallen Rands, branch manager at PDI National Cranes. “If we had to use a truck mount it would have made the process take twice as long. That RT is very handy.”
Once assembled and in the water, the barges were positioned underneath the bridge. Priestly then welded six heavy duty wood block and steel framed towers underneath the structure and lowered the bridge onto the barge. The crane was then used to remove remaining bridge pieces on the east side of the channel.
“We ended up throwing the jib on the crane and we could reach across to 155 feet, and still able to lift 2,000 pounds,” Rands said.
“The (rough terrain cranes) make it a breeze when you’re working in areas like that,” Rands said. “I could have put a truck mount in but doing so takes longer to set up. With the RT, you just set the boom. Lift the outriggers and you move it.”
He added the rough terrain crane’s 10-foot width and 27-foot length, as well as various steering configurations, simplified navigating the site.
“Those RTs are great because they’re so small and versatile and they can go on any project,” Rands said.
The Link-Belt 8090 Series II features a pin-and-latching telescopic system capable of lifting 90-tons at 8 feet. The standard boom ranges from 38 to 140 feet, while attachment options extend the reach by 58 feet.
Contributor: By Bill Tremblay Crane & Hoist Canada
