Linden Comansa hydroelectric power plant work
10 January 2018
The CCC Ituango Consortium, which comprises Brazilian conglomerate Carmago Correa and Colombian construction firms Constructora Conconcreto and Coninsa Ramon H, are using three tower cranes from Spanish manufacturer Linden Comansa to help build the Ituango hydroelectric power plant in Colombia. Once completed the power plant will be the largest in the Colombia and it is currently the largest infrastructure project under way in the country.
At the time of writing in early January there were three Linden Comansa tower cranes installed on site. Two of them, a 21LC450 and a 16LC185, were being used to build a spillway. Both cranes were set up to reach a height of 60 metres and were assembled on a folding cross base with a travelling system. This means they can be moved on tracks installed on the ground, enabling them to cover more of the construction site faster than being dismantled and reassembled each time they are moved. The 21LC450 has a capacity of 20 tonnes and a height under hook of 54.6 metres, while the 16LC185 can handle a load of up to 8 tonnes and has a height under hook of 59.5 metres.
The third tower crane on site is an 11LC160, which lifts 8 tonnes. It was initially used to help build a tunnel, which will provide road access to the spillway. The 11LC160 was then moved to help build two intake tunnels, which will take water from the reservoir to the turbines. At both locations, the 11LC160 was set up with a 40 m under hook height. Like the other two cranes, it was installed on a folding base with travelling system enabling it to be moved quickly and lift different loads over a larger area than a stationary crane would be able to.
According to Linden Comansa, the modular structure of its cranes, comprising light and easy to handle parts, made transport to and assembly at the site relatively easy given the remote nature of the power plant, which is located in mountainous terrain. The cranes were sold to the CCC Ituango Consortium by Gigacon – Linden Comansa’s official distributor in Colombia. Gigacon also carried out the initially assembly of the cranes at the construction site.
