Construction methods · Heavy lift, moving and accelerated construction

Floating crane erection

A crane barge of 1,000-4,000 t lifts complete spans, steel box sections, arch halves or pylon segments from a delivery barge and sets them on the piers. Where the water is deep enough and calm enough, it replaces months of piece-by-piece erection with days of lifts.

How bridges get built · Heavy lift, moving and accelerated construction · Floating crane erection

Also called: floating sheerleg, crane vessel, whole-span lift

crane vessel 1,000-4,000 twhole span set in one liftdelivery bargeFloating crane erection
Concept diagram (TheBridgeEng)

How it is done

  1. Fabricate spans or sections in a yard on the water; load out onto a delivery barge.
  2. Position the crane vessel on anchors or with dynamic positioning; lift in a weather window with tide and current limits; set on bearings or temporary supports.
  3. Connect, release the rigging, move to the next lift.

Where it fits

  • Sea and estuary viaducts with whole precast spans (to 3,000 t), steel box girder main span sections, pylon tops, arches assembled on shore; water deep enough for the vessel (usually 6 m or more).

Where it does not

  • Shallow rivers, strong currents, exposed sites without weather windows, lifts beyond the crane class (the game's marine_lift check), long spans beyond about 200 m in one piece.

Plant, pace and money

PlantSheerleg or revolving crane vessel 1,000-4,000 t, delivery barges, tugs, anchor handling.
ProductivityOne to three lifts per day in good weather.
CostUSD 100,000-400,000 per day for the vessel; the game's floating crane mobilisation.

Risks and controls

What goes wrong

  • Vessel motion during the lift, rigging failure, collision with the pier, weather downtime.

Quality assurance

Lift plan with dynamic amplification, rigging certificates, weather and tide limits with go/no-go criteria.

Examples

Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau (3,000 t spans), Oresund approach spans, Incheon Bridge approaches, Japanese Honshu-Shikoku decks.

In the bridge game

What Bridge Master applies when you pick it

Deck types: PSC I-girder, PSC U-girder, Precast segmental box, Steel box girder, Orthotropic steel box, Steel truss, Steel arch, Spliced PSC girder, Steel plate girder, Voided slab, Extradosed, Cable-stayed, Network tied arch. Spans 40-120 m, up to 200 m.

  • +30: Deep water viaduct: lift whole spans by floating crane.
  • +15: Navigable river with barge access.
  • -45: Crane barge cannot float.
  • -25: Fast current makes barge positioning dangerous.
  • not allowed: Floating crane on dry land.

Try it in the game →

Related methods

Strand jack liftingFloat-in of complete arches and spansSteel and composite pylonsBalanced cantilever with precast segments

Further reading

DNV-ST-N001 Marine operations · IMCA lifting guidance

Strand jack lifting →