Earthquake-proofing Japan’s bridges with Liebherr 42 K.1/J fast-erecting cranes
Five 42 K.1/J cranes are working on the construction of a motorway bridge close to Mount Fuji in the south east of Japan.
The Shin (New) - Tohmei Expressway connects the city of Toyoda with Japan’s capital Tokyo. Because of the mountainous terrain, the motorway needs to run through a number of tunnels as well as across several bridges and viaducts. In addition to this landscape, planning of the motorway and its construction has to also take the region’s high risk of earthquakes into account.
And this is where the Liebherr 42 K.1/J fast-erecting crane comes into play, as it can, compliant with standards, withstand earthquakes scoring level nine on the Mercallis scale and hurricanes of 200 km/h.
The 42 K.1/J cranes are being used to construct the bridge piers and girders of the motorway section near Gotenba-Shi. Their flexibility is of particular advantage here: as a power line crosses the site, the lowest tower height of 12 metres was chosen in several cases.
The construction company Sumitomo-Mitsui Co. Ltd has rented the cranes from Cranetal Noda Co. Ltd and is particularly impressed by the crane control’s safety system as well as the exceptional flexibility offered in terms of jib length and tower height.
The jib length is variable from 25.5 to 36 metres, the tower height from 12 to 26 metres.
