SPMT stars in Mammoet bridge challenge

Mammoet was working for contractor Hentschke on the steel bridge project in Leipzig. Photo: Cometto

Transporting and installing a new rail bridge is always a major undertaking and this one, on a particularly confined site, called for precise control.

International heavy transport and lifting specialist Mammoet chose multiple lines of Cometto self propelled modular transporter (SPMT) to transport and install the 750 tonne steel structure.

Mammoet was working for contractor Hentschke Bau on the bridge project for Deutsche Bahn in Germany. The single-piece bridge in Leipzig-Sellerhausen was transported on four 10-axle SPMT combinations side by side.

The new bridge over two railway lines replaced an old one previously demolished. Built offsite, the new bridge was transported around 400 metres over a temporary roadway made of steel plates to its final position.

“What matters in a manoeuvre like this is precise control, experienced personnel and reliable equipment,” Cometto said.

Mounted on top of the SPMT were four towers of Mammoet’s Mega Jack heavy lifting tower system to get the new bridge to the correct height off the ground. The MJS300 has a capacity of 300 tonnes per tower and they were linked at the top in pairs by large header beams to spread the load.

“On a project like this, every step has to be right,” observed Michel Bex, Mammoet SPMT supervisor and technical expert.

The main part of the move took around two hours, prior to the final precise placement operation. The railway line on routes towards Dresden and Chemnitz was suspended for two weeks in a scheduled closure so all the bridge work had to go to plan and be done within that time.

With the bridge in position precise height adjustment and final lowering could be done using the SPMT’s 700 mm of hydraulic suspension travel. Photo: Cometto

Precision

For his part Steffen Petzold, Cometto product manager, highlighted the precision element. “The electronic steering system provides millimetre-precise control during handling. Each axle can be steered individually.”

The stroke of the hydraulic suspension cylinders on the SPMT give a total vertical travel of 700 millimetres. Combining that with the jack-up lifting system allows the bridge to be lifted, transported and lowered into its final position, Petzold said.

With the new bridge in position work continues on the rest of the railway line works, installing the catenary, signalling equipment and so on. At the time of writing in early September inauguration of the new bridge was scheduled for 3 October, German Unity Day.

On its way: Four sets of ten axle lines of Cometto SPMT, each with a power pack, were close coupled side by side. Photo: Cometto