Thursday, January 29, 2015

Awesome heavy lift crane arrives at sub refit base in Kings Bay, Georgia

Inch-by-slow-moving-inch, contractors from Northcliffe Shipping and Trading out of Saint Simons Island, Ga., converged on the Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay waterfront to safely transition a 120-foot tall, 60-ton heavy lift portal crane from a waterborne barge, across a temporary bridge, and to its new home at Refit Wharf One last Jan. 22.
Acquiring this re-appropriated crane was a collective effort between Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Naval Sea Systems Command, and Trident Refit Facility. 
It was brought in to replace the previous K2 that was damaged beyond repair during a rare micro-burst storm in June 2009. Violent winds pushed K2 120 feet down its track directly towards another crane, K4, where their booms became entangled.
Since the loss of K2, TRIREFFAC has relied upon three vice four cranes, only one of which was a heavy lift portal type, for all heavy lift operations on the waterfront supporting submarine refits and maintenance periods. 
Capt. Lawrence Hill, commanding officer of Trident Refit Facility, was on hand to see the awesome spectacle of moving the massive K5 from a floating barge to the pier. 
Below is a photo of the new crane leaving Jacksonville on the voyage north to Kings Bay.










1 comment:

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing your story with us. I bet it would be fun to operate one of those heavy lift cranes. Large cranes by ships and boats are a dead giveaway that you are at a shipyard or port. These are essential for getting materials on and off of ships as well as performing any necessary repairs and maintenance for ships that sea rough seas and corrosive salt water. http://www.lockwoodbrothers.com/heavy-lift.php