SPG customises access solutions for three Texas LNG tank projects
Published by David Rowlands,
Editor
LNG Industry,
Through the use of customised Hydro-Mobile F Series and S Series mastclimbers, the work was completed on schedule and with proficiency, while improving the safety and productivity of its customers.
Each of the tanks on the Texas projects holds 30 million gal. of LNG, is approximately 140 ft tall and 185 ft in diameter.
Structural Technologies/VSL required a specialised access solution to install and tension steel post tension cables at four vertical concrete buttresses that anchored the tendons, each wrapping halfway around the tanks. The Hydro-Mobile mastclimbers allowed the team to install the steel cables, use hydraulic jacks to stress the tendons, and fill the ducts with cement grout. The platforms were used for three operations, including the installation of the post tension strands, stressing the strands, and grouting work.
The Cheniere Energy LNG project, located in Corpus Christi, required a safe and efficient way to access the buttresses of two tanks during their post-tensioning activities. Structural Technologies/VSL needed four mastclimbers to simultaneously operate for a year, and two additional ones for a further five months, capable of working at an offset elevation on each side of the buttress with heavy loads, with speed to quickly reach the full 140 ft height, and jib arms on the platform to support hydraulic jacks.
The solution was a custom Hydro-Mobile’s F300 Series: a fast unit, capable of travelling at 38’/min., up to 12 000 lbs of capacity that can be split into two work platforms, each travelling independently on one side of the mast. Each platform had two integrated custom jib arms that were capable of holding a 1000 lb hydraulic jack apiece.
The Freeport LNG project located in Quintana, Texas, also needed a safe and productive means of access during its post-tensioning activities on the buttress of its LNG tank. Electrical mast climbing work platforms were required to gain access to each buttress located along the circumference of the LNG tank. For this project, Hydro-Mobile’s S Series was selected. It is also a fast unit, travelling at 30’/min., with high capacity up to 10 800 lbs.
Benjamin Forbes, Senior Project Manager, Structural Technologies/VSL, said: “These were challenging projects. Both were big and very tall for concrete tanks. There was a great deal of other work happening around us and the mast climbers provided a stable work environment.
“SPG was great to work with. Any time there was an issue with the equipment, they quickly addressed it. They were always timely in their responses. Their solution offered quality, safety and was a great option for the extra capacity. It was a practical and efficient solution.”
Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/product-news/04102018/spg-customises-access-solutions-for-three-texas-lng-tank-projects/
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