46
ACT
DECEMBER 2013
experienced crane operators, mechanics
and technical representatives.
“We were lucky that the fire didn’t
spread to our building,” said Chellino
Crane President Greg Chellino. “It was a
really nasty fire – one of the worst we’ve
ever had around here.”
Calling in the neighbor
When rebuilding efforts began, AZZ
Galvanizing called on its neighbor for
assistance in replacing a number of tanks.
The largest, most significant piece of work
involved the settling and placement of a
new kettle tank used for galvanizing steel.
The 150,000-pound tank measured 50-
feet-long by 12-feet-wide by 12-feet-high.
“We talked about slipping and sliding
the tank into the building, but we decided
to use our SL6000 Kobelco crawler crane
and go in through the top after they reset
some beams,” said Chellino. “We knew
that crane would do the job with enough
safety built into it. Using the crawler crane
instead of gantries saved our customer a
couple of weeks. That was important to
them because they wanted to finish the
roof and walls and get the plant up and
running again as soon as possible.”
Kobelco designed the SL6000 model
Terry White
reports that
after a fire destroyed a
galvanizing plant, Chellino
Crane was called in
to help rebuild.
W
hen the first of the
firefighters began arriving
at the AZZ Galvanizing
Plant in an unincorporated area of Joliet
Township, IL at about 1:30 a.m. on
Sunday, April 29, 2012, flames and smoke
engulfed the 300-foot-long building. For
well over five hours, six fire departments
worked to control the flames.
Despite their efforts to save the factory,
it “was reduced to rubble, crumbled
aluminum walls and caved-in roofs,”
according to an article the next day in the
Joliet Herald News.
Investigators estimated
damages at $20 million. Fortunately,
none of the 64 employees were on duty at
the time of the fire, and no injuries were
reported among the firefighters.
The galvanizing plant was one of 34
operated by the Fort Worth, TX-based
company, which calls itself the nation’s
largest galvanizer. Among those plants
are two other Illinois plants in Dixon and
Peoria.
Adjoining the Joliet plant was the well-
stocked yard and the offices of Chellino
Crane, Inc. Founded more than 60 years
ago, the family-owned business prides
itself on the quality of its 8 1/2- to 600-ton
capacity cranes and its highly qualified,
SITE REPORT
LIFTING
When rebuilding
efforts began, AZZ
Galvanizing called
on its neighbor,
Chellino Crane,
for assistance
in replacing a
number
of tanks.
Good neighbors
Chellino Crane President
Greg Chellino and AZZ
Galvanizing Sales Manager
Scott Matalone.
