Business profile
Heavylift solution provider ALE honed its skills on UK-based transport-related contracts before achieving the world’s heaviest jack lift earlier this year
T
he company implemented a highly strategic project to remove and then replace the rail bridge at
Sandhills railway station on Merseyside. The difficulty of the undertaking was compounded by the fact that part of the new station building was positioned above the supporting structure for the bridge. Fortunately though, when the new station was being designed it was done in such a way that the building is self-supporting. The 500Te old bridge decks were removed using 28 axles of SPMT’s. ALE integrated sixteen 100Te capacity climbing jacks into the transport arrangement, to ensure height requirements over the abutment wall. Network Rail’s scheme project manager
Daniel Wilcock explained: ‘The old bridge was a single structure carrying the two-track electrified rail route between Southport, Ormskirk, Kirkby and Liverpool Central. It is a key route for commuters and leisure travellers, so it was essential we replaced it before it started to have an impact on train services.’ The removed bridge was the original 1881 wrought iron structure and was showing signs of corrosion. It also carried over 100 power, signalling and telecommunications cables - many of which are linked to the nearby signalling and electrical control centre that manages the entire Merseyrail operation. Also, ground conditions are such that
over 50 ‘soil nails’ or ground anchors, each 30m long, had to be inserted either side of the bridge to prevent any movement in the abutment walls supporting it.
The old bridge was jacked up on a multi-
axle vehicle and gently slid into a nearby compound. The same method was used to slide the new bridge decks into place. To complete the project, the old and
replacement bridge decks were manoeuvred around the station platform and beneath a temporary walkway bridge. ALE used various configurations of SPMT’s to achieve the limited space manoeuvres,. ALE also had to ensure that no
loading was applied to the large section of pavement that needed to be crossed, this was achieved by transporting them across bridging mats. The decks were then offloaded to high level trestles where they would be jacked down for demolition. The 270Te replacement bridge decks
which were previously jacked up to installation height in preparation were removed from the trestles using 16 axles of SPMT’s complete with high level trailer steelwork. Barnaby Mills, project manager at ALE
said ‘This project was a good example of the collaborative working ALE provides. Being able to work with our clients to provide the best solution means that our projects are carried out with minimum impact on overall project time. The engineering package ALE provides ensures that the operation will go as smoothly as it can, and by carrying out a full ‘swept path’ and trial run, any issues that may occur can be rectified in advance.’
West Coast main line bridge ALE also installed a new bridge for the West Coast Main Line at the Land Farm Bridge site near Lockerbie, Scotland. Due to overhead power cables, ALE had to engineer a solution that allowed the removal of the original bridge and the installation of the new bridge without the use of cranes. SPMT’s at narrow configurations were instead used to navigate the narrow lanes and access the bridge’s remote location. Logistical issues including tight bends on the roads also meant that other equipment had to be transported in compact loads. Therefore precise choices were made
September 2013 Page 101
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170 |
Page 171 |
Page 172 |
Page 173 |
Page 174 |
Page 175 |
Page 176 |
Page 177 |
Page 178 |
Page 179 |
Page 180 |
Page 181 |
Page 182 |
Page 183 |
Page 184 |
Page 185 |
Page 186 |
Page 187 |
Page 188