Vinci on multi-million euro stadium

French construction company Vinci has put ten Potain tower cranes to work on a €250 million (US$ 348 million) football stadium in Lyon, France.

The stadium, the Stade des Lumières (Stadium of Light), will seat 60,000 and will host games during the UEFA Euro Championship in 2016. It will be the home stadium to Olympique Lyonnais, a football team in France, a spokesperson added.

The tower cranes were rented from Lyon Levage, a local crane specialist. To erect the cranes a 300 tonne capacity Grove GMK6300L and a 400 tonne capacity Grove GMK6400 all terrain crane were used. The towers were positioned so they are capable of reaching over the 56,000 square metre site.

All ten tower cranes were installed within an eight week time frame, with the final model arriving on site in December 2013.

Models on site at the time of writing were eight 20 tonne capacity MD 485 B M20s and two 16 tonne capacity MD 365 B L16s. They were erected to heights between 55 and 70 metres and were configured with jib lengths of 60 m for the MD 485 Bs and 65 m for the MD 365 Bs.

A variety of tasks on site included pouring concrete and lifting and installing steel structures. In total, 120,000 cubic metres of concrete and around 7,000 tonnes of steel will be used to construct the stadium.

The stadium is part of a €450 million ($625 million) project covering 50 hectares, a company spokesperson said. A training centre, a leisure centre and additional football pitches will also be part of the scheme. It will also include a number of hotels and office buildings.

Eric Etchart, Manitowoc Cranes president and general manager, said, “We are very proud to have so many of Potain cranes working on such a major project. This stadium will be a national symbol for soccer in France, so the work must be completed to the highest standards and according to a tight schedule. We are confident that our cranes will help make this project a great success.”

Work on the stadium is scheduled for completion in 2015.