02.08.2025

Twin 1,000 tonners in bridge swap

German contractor Wasel has completed the replacement of a concrete pipe bridge on the A42 motorway between Bottrop and Essen in Germany, using two 1,000 tonne Liebherr LR 11000 crawler cranes.

The bridge connects regional refineries with the Bottrop tank farm, crossing both the A42 and River Emscher. The project involved seven Liebherr cranes in total: two 1,000 tonne LR 11000 crawler cranes for the main lifting operations, plus a 100 tonne mobile crane, a 220 tonne LTR 1220, a 230 tonne LTM 1230-5.1, a 250 tonne LTM 1250-5.1 and a 450 tonne crane for assembly work.
Please register to see all images

The two 1,000 tonners performing a tandem lift

Two bridge segments, each weighing 220 tonnes and measuring 71 metres long, seven metres wide and six metres high, were delivered via the Rhine Herne Canal. The LR 11000s - configured with 96 metre and 84 metre booms respectively - then lifted the segments from the vessel in tandem and placed them in a pre-assembly area.
Please register to see all images

To set down the steel structure, it had to be manoeuvred between the two cranes. The blue LR 11000 tracked several metres under load to make as the load was lifted

For the installation phase, one LR 11000 was dismantled, transported one kilometre down the A42 and reassembled on the autobahn/highway with a 72 metre main boom. The existing concrete pipe bridge was dismantled using steel corsets to prevent structural damage. New bridge segments were transported to site on SPMT units via the closed highway to the installation site.
Please register to see all images

The bridge segments moving to the installation area

Wasel project manager Viktor Hein said: "The two 1,000 tonners impressed throughout the entire mission with their high lifting capacity, but also with their agility. The operator and assembly friendly design meant that we were able to relocate one of the two in the shortest possible time from the pre-assembly area to the assembly area via the highway."
Please register to see all images

To avoid the old concrete segments breaking during the lift, they are encased in a steel structure

The project was completed two days ahead of the planned five day schedule.
Please register to see all images

Two new steel elements replace four concrete sections over the A42 and the River Emscher