Photos | Liebherr crawler crane takes charge of dredging in Arctic airport build

The new airports will be built in the coastal towns of Ilulissat and Nuuk on the western part of Greenland. They will make it possible for larger aircraft to fly into the area directly from the European or American mainland. Currently, only propeller-driven aeroplanes can land there.

Because the new runway in Ilulissat is partially in the sea, a thick layer of clay sediment needs to be removed from the seabed before it can be backfilled.

To achieve this, Munck, the main contractor for the two projects, is using Liebherr’s 200t HS8200 duty cycle crawler crane for the dredging work.

Equipped with a 35m-long boom and a clamshell grab with a capacity of 3.5 cubic metres (m³), the crane is capable of removing up to 1,000m³  of excavated materials in a one-day shift. It operates six days a week in 10-hour shifts.

The machine is also equipped with Liebherr’s ‘Dredging Assistant’, which shows the operator the position and fill level of the grab, the number and duration of work cycles, or the handling performance in real time.

Munck Civil Engineering is using a Liebherr HS8200 duty cycle crawler crane to dredge the seabed in Ilulissat, Greenland, ahead of the construction of a new airport (Image courtesy of Liebherr)

Meanwhile, Munck Civil Engineering will find all of the rock material used for the project within its boundaries.

“In total, we have to drill and blast around 5.5 million cubic metres of rock material. We then transport this to the construction section so that we can subsequently build a 2-kilometre long runway,” said construction manager Kevin van den Bos.

The crane is supplied with the Liebherr cold package to allow it to operate in the Arctic summer, when the average temperature is 8C. But with winter temperatures falling to -35C, the clock is ticking to finish the works before the seasons change. “It is very important for us to complete the dredging work before the ice spreads in the bay and makes our work impossible,” said van den Bos.

Meawnhile, the region is only supplied by a ship once a week and also brings parts and equipment for Munck Civil Engineering, making a large store and the ability to repair everything itself particularly important for the company.