TRANSPORT
SITEREPORT
43
NOVEMBER 2014
ACT
Transporting and erecting
a shaft furnacewas not
exactly a straightforward
project for Gruas ABC.
A
new shaft furnacewas required
in the townofGarcia in the
stateofNuevoLeon,Mexico.
GruasABCwas contracted tohaul the
giant components thatwere shaped like
huge flowerpots attachedat the sides.
GruasABC, headquartered inMonterrey,
NuevoLeon, (withoffices inApodacaand
the cityofQuerétaro) tookdeliveryof the
furnace in the townof SalinasVictoria,
NuevoLeon,which is about 30.5miles
fromGarcia.While that seemed like a
short distance, the transportationplanwas
quite complicateddue to the immense size
For the transport,GruasABCused its
150-ton capacityGoldhofermodular
trailer. Thehaul required front and rear
escorts aswell asbucket trucks and cranes
to lift uppower lines andotherobstacles.
Once at theplant, the furnacewas
erectedat aheight of about 115 feet by two
cranes, a140-ton capacityGroveTM1400,
anda250-ton capacityTerexDemag
AC615.
“During the transport,CFEElectricity
Companyand theStateCommunication
andTransportDepartment (SCT), along
with local police escorts, helpedon this
endeavor,” saidCortez. “The jobwas
performedas efficientlyandwithout
incident.”
■
of the furnace thatweighed60 tons and
measured59 feet long, 26 feet indiameter
and stood21 feet tall.
“The transport of the furnacewasn’t as
straightforwardaswewouldhave liked,”
saidBernabeCortez,CEO,GruasABC. “It
took coordinationandplanning to remove
obstacles along theway.”
Electrical lines andphone cableswere
lifted15 times along the route.
“Onepedestrianbridge,whichwason
thewayof the transport,was liftedup
using two15-ton cranes,”Cortez said. “A
roadsideboundarywallwas removed in
order toget intoa roadwhichwouldallow
us tobypass abridge that didn’t have the
required clearance to travel on.”
See a video of thismove by visiting:
Furnace
adventure
Gruas ABC used its 150-ton
capacity Goldhofer modular trailer
to haul themassive furnace.
While the routewas about 30miles, the
obstaclesmade the route seemmuch longer.
Police and escort vehicleswere always in
close proximity. At times the transporter
moved at awalking pace.
Bucket trucks and
a truck-mounted
articulating cranewere
used 15 times to lift
power lines, allowing
the furnace to pass
through.
