River S Bridge Construction at Ridgefield, WA by Ceccanti

(no Bridge Hunter)

A collection of construction videos in reverse chronological order

3D Satellite

They are replacing a one-lane wood bridge with a longer two-lane bridge that also goes over the BNSF tracks.

So why am I posting about yet another concrete-girder bridge? Because the contractor has done a good job of documenting the construction and because the project includes "ground improvement" that I am still trying to understand. [FHWA-project]

The contractor, Ceccanti, bought a MLC300 and Manitowoc helped them assemble the base at JT Marine's yard.

Update: ManitowocCranes wrote an article with this two photos.

1

2

(new window)  (source)


Then they barged the MLC300 base and a Grove crane to the worksite and...
(new window) (source)

...added the boom and counterweight stacks to the MLC300 at the worksite. They first used the crane to help improve the ground that will be under the bridge abutment using a ground penetrating vibrator. [FHWA-newsletter] At -0:39 in the following video you can see the crane push its counterweight stack out just before it raises the boom because the boom itself is a load with a long radius when its on the ground. In fact, some cranes need help from the assembly crane to get the boom up.

Screenshot @ -0:46
[Dennis DeBruler shared this post to Manitowoc Crane Enthusiasts on June 29, 2019.]

Refuge Blog
[A view of the penetrating vibrator in action. Note the two hoses. The vibrator obviously uses hydraulic power.]

Two images of the Stage 2 video are of particular interest. The swing bridge is here. I spent a lot of time looking for the lift bridge because I can't believe I can't find it. But I can't.

@ 1:32

@ 1:34

Ceccanti, Inc posted two photos with the comment: "Crews down in Ridgefield are getting the in water support columns ready for installation starting next week! Thank you Mick Cannon for getting these shots!"
[They are building the rebar cage that will be installed into a pier shaft.]

1

2

Screenshot
[As the comment explains, we don't see the drilling of the pier shafts because they lost the last week of activity.]

Installing a rebar cage.

Screenshot

Setting the first set of girders. "Each girder was about 130ft long and approx 130,000lbs."

Screenshot

This is a screenshot from the above video that captures the special trailer used to haul the beams. Since this road serves just a wildlife refuge, they closed the refuge during the week so the construction company could use the existing bridge.

@ -0:42

The project is expected to last until July, 2020. [FWS] I want to see how they position the crane for the middle and far stages of girder installation. I plan to check their page later and add any more "big crane" activity that I find.

June Time Lapse Video "Time-Lapse for the month of June! Some highlights from the month were crews pouring and forming the piers and abutment with concrete as well as setting the first stage of girders."

I did catch a frame showing that they used the MLC300 to help build the far pier as well as the close one and the abutment.

Screenshot @ -0:42

And I saw at least a couple of frames with a concrete pumper.

Screenshot @ -0:22

Ceccanti, Inc shared sixteen photos with the comment:

With the help from @nesscampbellcranerigging we set rest of the girders at River S this week!•Teams combined our Manitowoc 300 ton crane with a Liebherr 600 ton crane to complete most of the job. The last section was done with Ness Campbell's Liebherr and Grove cranes. •The project started on Tuesday the 30th with setting piers 1 to 2 and 2 to 3. Then the crew started at 3:30am on Thursday the 1st to set Piers 3 to 4 which go over the railroad tracks. They had to time the picks between the train schedule! •I think everyone is a bit more relieved now that the girders are done.

[The answer to how you set the girders on the long span is to rent a big crane to help you MLC300. It also helps that they can close the road and use the old bridge to move the beams adjacent to the span. Photo 8 shows the MLC300 has its counterweight stack shoved back quite a ways to balance the load of the beam.]

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

Ceccanti, Inc shared six photos with the comment: "Couple more that didnt post to the last one! Setting the last girder and the finished look with all of them in place!"

1

2

3

4

5

6

Ben Stalvey shared two photos with the comment: "MLC 300 power."

1

2

Cranes Today posted two photos with the comment:

Tacoma, Washington-based construction company Ceccanti, Inc has used a Manitowoc Cranes MLC 300 crawler crane for the replacement of an old wooden bridge in Ridgefield, Washington.
Read more here: http://www.cranestodaymagazine.com/…/mlc300-helps-bridge-r…/

[In the referenced article, the project manager says that one of the reasons they choose the MLC 300 was because of its maneuverability. Yet for this project they set it up on a bulkhead on the shore and it did all the construction without moving. One thing I learned is that the rebar cages weighed almost as much as the girders.]

1

2

A video of setting the girders

A time-lapse video summarizing some of the construction



(new window)   A time-lapse of the whole project. Piers and beams just all of a sudden appear. And I didn't see much happening near then end except for the grass growing. The two "cards" at the end might be more interesting: beams and assembly.