The biggest crane in the UK will soon be heading to Manchester to help build the Ordsall Chord Bridge.
Artist rendering of the Ordsall Chord Bridge.
The Weldex owned Liebherr LR 11350, a 1,350 tonne beast, will be in the city in February to lift and place the ‘arch’ of the bridge to link Piccadilly and Victoria stations.
It comes as business leaders report a ‘shortage’ of cranes due to all the construction work in the city.
The crane can lift 1,350 tonnes – which will come in handy when it comes time for Severfield UK to put in place the arches around mid-February.
Cranes currently working at the project
Jarrod Hulme, project manager for the Ordsall Chord, explained how the bigger crane would be used.
He said: “It’s the biggest crane of its kind available in the UK. It’s a crawler crane which means it’s on tracks.
“The arches are going to go in that are currently laid flat on site.
“Using both of the cranes, one at each end, we will rotate them into vertical positions and bolt them together.”
The Ordsall Chord is among many projects currently dotting Manchester’s skyline with yellow steel.
