BRIDGES Ӏ SECTOR SNAPSHOT


NEW HEIGHTS


The world’s highest bridge was completed in April this year in one of the world’s most challenging environments. The Huajiang Grand Canyon bridge in Guizhou, southwestern China, stands 625 metres above the surface of the Beipan river that flows in the gorge beneath it. The use of a Potain MCT 385


topless tower crane was crucial to its construction.


Owned and operated by Guizhou


ShengYongSheng, the crane arrived on site in late 2023, where it was configured with the full 75m jib on behalf of main contractors Guizhou Bridge Construction Group. As the core lifting equipment for the project, the crane handled loads of up to 20 tonnes for critical tasks such as pylon construction and steel truss girder installation over a main span of 1,420m and a total length of 2,890m. On the sheer cliffs and inhospitable


terrain of the local landscape the MCT 385 worked in tandem with the world’s longest-span cable crane system. Together they covered areas unreachable by conventional fixed cranes and significantly accelerated construction while providing stability and efficiency in the extreme conditions. “This canyon was once a construction


‘no-go zone’,” said Ling Qian, marketing manager - China, for Manitowoc, “but this project shows China’s ongoing


commitment to ambitious infrastructure development and highlights the role global, high-end equipment such as the MCT 385 can play in delivering these mega-projects. At Potain we want to turn projects that were previously impossible into reality.” ShengYongSheng’s MCT 385 has


enjoyed a decade of use on other projects in the region, including the Guiyang Twin Towers Project and the Xifeng Industrial Standardized Plant Project.


26 CRANES TODAY


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