(Above) Bragg Crane Service moving panels for the
San Diego Childrens Museum.
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Since it’s founding in 1946 Bragg Companies have grown from a single crane operation to one of the largest integrated service organizations in the construction industry. The company has several locations throughout California, Nevada and Arizona.
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| Currently Bragg Crane Service is involved with a number of projects. The company is working on new construction at the Shell refinery in Wilmington. Bragg Crane is using a Liebherr LR-1400/2 450-ton crane on that project which entails the expansion of the refinery’s FCC unit. The unit’s massive pieces, |
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which measure 30ft. wide and 45 ft. tall and weigh 320,000 lbs., had to be transported in sections on a multi-axle hydraulic platform trailer to the crane pad for hoisting by the Liebherr. The LR-1400/2 is working two shifts 6 days a week. Bragg Crane also has several RT cranes ranging up to 80 ton capacity working on the site. Work on the project began in July and will take over one year to complete.
Bragg Crane has another project going at the Chevron refinery in El Segundo. The company is removing the old vessels and installing new ones. Another LR-1400/2 in heavy lift configuration is being used on this job. The project started in December is expected to be completed by the end of the month.
One of the more unique projects Bragg Crane Service is currently involved with is the removal of a tunnel boring device in East Los Angeles. The boring device was being used in the construction of new line for the city’s underground Metro-link system. A 300-ton 2250 Manitowoc crane is being used on that job. The project began in November and is slated to be completed by the end of December.
Bragg Crane has also done a number of projects in the San Diego area. Currently they are handling steel erection for an eight-story office building located off Pacific Mesa Dr.
One of the most innovative and challenging jobs Bragg Crane has recently been involved with in America’s Finest City is the construction of the San Diego Children’s Museum. This project literally took months of planning before work could begin. This project involved tilt-up panels. Planning for the work began in 2005, with Bragg’s tilt-up specialist Allan Hansel responding to an inquiry from Dave Weigel, the Project Manager for Erickson-Hall Construction Company. Along with the concrete subcontractor for the project, Pacific Southwest Structures, solutions for the project were evaluated. |
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Although the heaviest panel weighed “only” 218,000 pounds, (panels in excess of 300,000 pounds are not uncommon in today’s buildings), the postage-stamp jobsite with limited access due to below grade improvements proved to be a challenge. A crane that would handle 100,000 pounds at a 200’ radius proved to be the real challenge. The materials had to be lifted over a working parking structure. During construction Bragg Crane had personnel on the ground with radios in order to stop traffic in and out of the parking garage while the panels were being lifted into place. The area for the crane was extremely tight, having to be positioned next to a high pressure natural gas main, a water main and sewer system. The crane was assembled literally inches away from a main electrical station for the Metrorail. In order to secure the crane a 5 ft. thick concrete footing was poured for the crane.
In order to accomplish this project precise planning was imperative. Bragg Crane Service had recently completed the upgrade of their second Liebherr LR 1400 crawler crane to Series 2. Factory technicians worked at the Bragg Long Beach facility, welding and reworking to reinforce the crane, their efforts culminating in a test lift of over 900,000 pounds to recertify the crane as Series 2. The upgrade resulted in greatly enhanced capacities with the heavy lift attachment, attributes that supported the demands of the San Diego Children Museum project. The crane charts 100,000 lbs. at a 200 ft. radius with 276 ft. of boom; this is the
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(Right) The crane
is boomed up after
the25 truck loads
of components
are assembled.
(Below) Sections
are delivered, then
pinned together to
build the crane. |
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| (Below) The little guy makes the crane real big. |
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rough equivalent of suspending twenty-five F-150 pickups over the opposing 35 yard line of a football field with the crane centered on your goal line.
Two major city streets had to be closed while Bragg Crane brought in the crane and during its removal. After two days of crane assembly, panel erection began on September 11, 2006. The architectural panels were hoisted and set for four days, setting about half of the building. After a month long break to cast the balance of the panels, the Bragg Crane Service Operators and Ironworkers returned to the site to finish the panel erection. Bragg crews then returned to disassemble the crane and load out some twenty-five trucks with crane components for travel to the next jobsite. Work was completed on schedule, as quoted and without injury or incident – another successful project for the big Liebherr crane.
Big jobs involving equipment testing and reconfiguration aren’t the only projects Bragg Crane is involved in. The company’s 24/7 policy also covers smaller projects as well. Bragg Crane recently completed work on the setting of two concrete columns at the New USC Hospital expansion located near
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Interstate 5 and Marango. The columns are 125 years old and are part of the hospital’s original gates.
Naturally to be able to handle nearly any type of job that might require a crane, Bragg Crane Service has one of the largest inventories of crane equipment that can be found in the country. The company has over 300 cranes that range from an 8 1/2-ton all the way up to a behemoth 900-ton crane.
Even a company like Bragg Crane Services with their history of innovation and experience faces challenges. One of the greatest challenges the company regularly must deal with are getting the job done while having to deal with local laws, environmental restrictions and municipal codes.
Bragg Crane Service is dedicated to meeting their customer’s needs. With each new project they have readily met the challenge and succeeded. It is a testament to the people working for the company that Bragg Crane Service has continued to meet those demands for over sixty years. Cc
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(Upper Left)
The management and field teams celebrate the panel raise.
(Middle Right)
Crane crews stack counterweight. 551,000 lbs on the trailing counterweight and 392,500 lbs on the crane equal close to a million pounds of ballast.
(Left)
Traffic control ensured the safety of the public during the critical lift operations. |
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