The new bridge is prepared for westbound traffic to be diverted from the Tappan Zee in August, 2017.


The main towers top out at 419 feet.


Crews guide the first stay-cable into place in July, 2016.


All photos courtesy New York State Thruway Authority


“THE PROJECT WILL INCLUDE 220 MILLION POUNDS OF STEEL AND 300 THOUSAND CUBIC YARDS OF CONCRETE... THE MAIN SPAN’S 192 STAY CABLES, THEMSELVES 14 MILES LONG, INCLUDE MORE THAN 700 MILES OF STEEL STRANDS.”


Another critical component of the spans handled


by I Lift NY were the crossbeams linking each of the four pairs of main towers, which angle outward away from each other. Chesapeake, VA-based Coastal Precast Systems produced the pieces on a floating barge—on which they were shipped from eastern Virginia to the Hudson. Te first of these was placed in February 2016 as light snow highlighted the variability of weather workers faced, requiring additional safety-related prep work. While certainly the largest, the I Lift NY super crane is far from the only crane on the Hudson river; more than 30 other floating cranes were already onsite when it arrived. Among these, a derrick situated on a 150-foot-tall pedestal—equipped with a 130-foot lifting arm—was employed to place many of the 6,000 pre-fabricated road deck panels. Te machine’s height,


reach, and relative simplicity allowed it to efficiently hoist and place panels on either span of the Westchester approach—reaching over the new westbound span to complete work on the eastbound side, ahead of the demolition of the old structure still handling traffic on the opposite side.


And among the most prominent machines on the site for some time were the four red tower cranes used to support a wide variety of activities required to erect the four pairs of 490-foot towers that anchor the main span. Teir 25-ton capacity handled delivery of freshly mixed concrete, pre-assembled segments of rebar, the hoisting of the stay cables, and ultimately, removal of the jump forms used to construct the towers.


‘Taking Zero Chances’ Working at height above water obviously requires comprehensive safety efforts, and the project employed an experienced team of safety experts. Equipment for working at height (six feet or more) on the site included a specialized harness attached to a shock-absorbing lanyard, and a life vest with a water-sensitive beacon. And to promote engagement in the safety culture, the ‘Taking Zero Chances’ slogan was developed by participants in an all-hands safety meeting.


WIRE ROPE EXCHANGE


NOVEMBER–DECEMBER 2017


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