A High Lift for Health

As part of an HVAC system upgrade, a client needed to place a new industrial-size, 25,000-pound chiller onto the roof of its multi-story medical facility in New Orleans, LA. The challenges on this project, located in a congested urban environment, ranged from limited space to set up cranes and associated support equipment to a requirement that trees along the roadway could not to be disturbed. Also, the road and medical facility had to remain open throughout the effort.

The Setup

To stabilize the ground, the Deep South crew first set outrigger mats that extended over and above street curbs to stabilize the ground.

Once the site was prepared, a 550-ton Liebherr LTM-1450 crane with luffing jib was delivered from Baton Rouge to the site. Crews assembled the crane with support from an assist crane over the course of 10 hours. Notably, the assist crane had to be located on a nearby cross street because of the limited roadway space.

Once assembled, crews performed several lifts with the necessary structural iron framing that would hold the HVAC system.

The Lift

The day after the crane was assembled, crews lifted and set the chiller, along with miscellaneous piping, into position on the roof for installation over a course of four hours. On the third day, the crane was disassembled and returned to Baton Rouge.

The assembly and disassembly of the crane as well as the lift of the chiller and miscellaneous equipment were completed with precision and safety—all while keeping the roads and the medical facility open and avoiding nearby obstructions.