Get FinancingManitowoc Lattice Boom Crawler Crane Fleet Constructing 3-Mile Florida Bridge
Florida’s Howard Frankland Bridge stretches for nearly 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) between Tampa and St. Petersburg. Although it has been expanded several times in its 62-year history, it serves an estimated 132,000 vehicles a day, and traffic congestion has long made it a bottleneck between the two cities. Hence, the Florida Department of Transportation began construction of a new, $865.3 million replacement bridge alongside the congested original in November 2020.
More than 20 Manitowoc crawler cranes are currently at work on the five-year Tampa Bay project, driving sheet and piles from barges, building columns, and setting beams and decks. A 386-ton (350-metric-ton) Manitowoc MLC300 lattice boom crawler crane is on the job along with 4100, 14000, 999, 2250, and 888 models from the manufacturer.
Heavy Lifting
The Manitowoc cranes are building the new bridge from both ends, and have driven more than 1,700 concrete and steel piles out of an estimated 3,000 into Tampa Bay’s limestone bedrock. “Each concrete pile weighs about 1,000 pounds per foot, so if we're driving a 121-foot pile, you're looking for around 121,000 lbs to trek that pile from just one crane,” says Greg Fullington, project executive with design and construction partner The Walsh Group. “So, this isn’t a job for just any crane.”
Once completed in 2025, the new Howard Frankland Bridge will have more deck area than any other bridge in Florida. It will be 168 ft (51.2 m) wide with eight traffic lanes, a path for cyclists and pedestrians, and a foundation for a possible light-rail system in the future. At that point, the Manitowoc cranes are expected to be called upon to demolish the old bridge.
Tailored To The Application
The MLC300 and other cranes were refurbished and adapted for marine use by Ring Power Crane in partnership with Manitowoc and Walter Payton Power Equipment (WPPE). The cranes were repainted and given a zinc undercoating to resist corrosion in the saltwater spray. To protect the environment, the cranes use biodegradable hydraulic fluid formulated by Manitowoc Lift Solutions.
“Strong [load] charts were a major concern since the center of gravity is always changing on the water, and Manitowoc crawlers have a reputation for their solid barge charts,” says Pat Delis, Walsh’s account representative at WPPE.
“We’ve rarely experienced any unexpected downtime,” says Walsh Senior Manager Chris Stearns. “With all those vibrations, we must pay close attention to the boom tips. We perform monthly inspections, which equates to servicing a crane each working day.”
WPPE also worked with Manitowoc Lift Solutions to design tilt block adaptors for the job. “Now, you can place the pile with a single crane because you can hang two blocks from the same point,” says WPPE Product Support Specialist Dustin Soerens. “The tilt block adaptor pins into the lower boom point and provides sheave-mounted transverse to the boom, allowing the piles to be tilted side-to-side without exceeding the allowable angles of the wire rope reeving.”
“In my opinion, Manitowoc cranes offer a good balance of performance capabilities and technology without excess complexity,” says Greg Moore, senior equipment manager at The Walsh Group. “The operators like the cranes, they are intuitive to use, and our technicians find them easy to maintain.”
The Manitowoc MLC300
Manitowoc says its 386-t MLC300 lattice-boom crawler crane has the most powerful load charts in its class. The crane can maximize its lifting capacity with a small footprint thanks to its Variable Position Counterweight (VPC) feature, which automatically moves the ballast to meet the demand.
The MLC300 has a 334.6-ft (101 m) maximum hook height. It can hoist full boom and luffing jib combinations without the use of outrigger supports. The crane can travel, swing, and counter-rotate with a full load on the hook. Its setup time is shortened by its self-erecting mast cylinder and its ability to raise full boom and luffing jib combos without a support crane.
Among the MLC300’s many jib/boom options is an 11.5-ft (3.5-m)-wide, high-capacity boom kit with an Extended Upper Boom Point feature and a VPC-Max attachment for maximizing the load moment. The crane also has a fixed position counterweight (FPC) configuration with multiple drum options for versatility. The MLC300 features Manitowoc’s Crane Control System (CCS) with dual screens and a jog dial.
Source: Manitowoc