In parallel with the existing Grenland Bridge outside Porsgrunn, a completely new bridge is currently being built that will become part of the new four-lane road on the E18 between Langang and Rugtvedt, which stands to be completed in 2025.  

The new bridge will be built in the same way as the old one, which is Norway’s tallest cable-stayed bridge with a tower height of 166 meters. Nordic Crane is involved in the project and, for instance, were deeply involved in the installation of tower cranes earlier this autumn. 

The most challenging aspect of this particular installation was the terrain. Here, the terrain shifts a lot in height, and there is therefore no natural parking space for a large 500t mobile crane. The solution was to place the equipment on plateaus. You can see more of this in the film below. 

Ola Westerling and Oskar Nilsson were in place as crane operators.

In March 2022, Nordic Crane established its own department in Haugesund, thereby gaining a foothold in Western Norway. The region has several exciting projects, including the development of Boliden’s zinc smelter in Odda. The development is extensive and will almost double their production capacity.

Boliden’s zinc smelter is almost 100 years old and has been expanded several times over the years. Nordic Crane has an agreement with Kruse Smith regarding the project, which this year became part of Backe Entreprenør AS, and the engagement appears to last primarily until the turn of the year

Nordic Crane has been part of the project for almost 16 months and has had up to 7 mobile cranes and truck crane trucks working simultaneously. The staffing consists of employees from the department in Haugesund and employees from several of our other departments who work shifts (14-14). In addition, we use hired crane operators when needed.

With several hundred workers, from different contractors on the project, the whole thing can almost feel like an anthill. Challenges with regards to capacity were solved when large residential barges were towed in and docked. It is therefore a very short distance “home” at the end of the working day.

Odd Bruno Bø-Fremstad (Fredrikstad department), and crane operator Jan Erik Frantsen (hired) on our 160-tonner. Odd-Bruno Bø-Fremstad from the department in Fredrikstad, is the one from Nordic Crane who has been with Boliden the longest. With his Volvo crane semi, he has full days moving steel-reinforcement, formwork and much more internally on site. Odd Bruno has close contact with the client, and feels the collaboration works well.

“Commuting between Fredrikstad and Odda is okay, even though it can sometimes be challenging to spend so much time away from home. But the working environment is great, and it’s well facilitated here, so that helps,” he says.

“The biggest challenges are related to the fact that there are many cranes and many other companies inside the area, at the same time as the production lines are running at full capacity. But everyone does a good job of safeguarding HSE work, so it’s no problem,” says Odd Bruno.

A department still under development
Nordic Crane is active throughout Scandinavia but is constantly working to expand its horizons.

“It’s great that we’ve gained entry into the region. The start-up phase of new departments is always demanding, but here we really have something exciting going on, explains CEO Eirik Kynningsrud.

“In Odda we are both at Boliden and at Tizir, as well as a number of other exciting assignments in the region. The work to develop the department in Haugesund is ongoing and is a priority task. At Nordic Crane we have many dedicated employees who are willing to join the projects wherever they are. This is extremely important in today’s market,” he concludes.

Fullriggerøya is an artificial island in the Trondheim Fjord where homes, boat yards and commercial buildings are being built. The first homes were completed already in 2013, and now the construction of a completely new recreational- and public swimming area has also begun. Nordic Crane was in place to lift and install a new pedestrian and cycle bridge, making access to the swimming area easier.

Grilstad Marina AS is building over 800 homes and a marina for 1000 boats in connection with an artificial island out in the Trondheim Fjord. Although much is finished, there is still some work to be done with regards to completing green spaces and recreational areas. On site, construction of a new bathing/swim area is underway and to improve access, a new pedestrian and cycle bridge has been installed over the “canal”.

“When we started planning last summer, we thought we had to use a 650-tonne crane. With the total weight and distance of the lift, this was initially quite obvious, says Reidar Røhjell Skarsem from Nordic Crane dept. Trondheim

“Along the way, however, it became clear that the job had to be done with a smaller crane. There wasn’t enough parking space for a large crane and the distance was simply too far,” he continues.

The solution was to use a Liebherr LTM 1230-5.1 which has a 75-meter telescopic boom. The final plan was to transport the mobile crane in by barge and use this as parking. In collaboration with Boa Offshore AS, calculations were made regarding the crane’s weight, counterweights and how the barge would behave when the crane moves with/without load.

Reliant on good weather and good planning

-We were of course particularly reliant on good weather and the job was postponed twice, but on the third day the weather gods showed us mercy and we got a whole day without wind and waves, explains Skarsem.

The crane was driven on and off the barge at Trondheim Harbour and transported to Grillstad Marina by tugboat, before two smaller tugboats took over, as it became too shallow for the large one.

With the crane and barge safely placed, three bridge elements were lifted into place. Two of 28 tons and one of 12 tons.

“In order for us to stay under a certain amount of pressure on the barge, it was calculated that the crane should not hoist the bridge elements further than 18 meters.

“There’s a lot of planning in a job like this. Many calculations. Skilled employees, modern equipment and experience are essential. Here we used the Liebherr crane’s integrated system and external PC programs to find the pointed centre of gravity. Once we have this, we know which boom angle/radius to stay on, so the barge doesn’t tilt too much. This time we set a limit of 2° inclination laterally,” explains Skarsem.

Terje Ingvaldsen was behind the controls of the mobile crane, and the job was carried out exactly according to plan.