SLJ900/32
| SLJ900/32 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Launching gantry |
| Manufacturer | Beijing Wowjoint Machinery Company[1] |
| Production | 2015[2] |
| Length | 91 metres (299 ft)[1] |
| Width | 7 metres (23 ft)[1] |
| Height | 9 m (29 ft 6 in)[3] |
| Weight | 580 tonnes (640 short tons)[1] |
| Propulsion | 64x wheel drive system |
| Speed |
|
The SLJ900/32 or otherwise known as the Iron Monster[4] is a superheavy launching gantry and one of the largest and most ubiquitous in the world. At over 90 meters in length, the SLJ900/32 is also one of the world's longest terrestrial vehicles. It is built by the Beijing Wowjoint Machinery Company and designed by the Shijiazhuang Railway Design Institute.[1][3]
Description
The SLJ900/32 as aforementioned, is 91 metres (299 ft) long, 7 metres (23 ft) wide, 9 m (29 ft 6 in) tall and weighs around 580 tonnes (640 short tons). It is a disproportionately long and slender vehicle which is needed as it is designed to construct bridges in a safe and efficient manner.[4] Compared to conventional cranes which require clear land and is only able to lift a few meters of bridge material per-lift, the SLJ900/32 is capable of lifting an entire large segment of bridging material (some of which weigh around 800 to 950 tons) in a relatively compact manner without the hassle of interference such as trees or rocks.[5]
Construction process is done via the vehicle carrying picking up a new pre-cast section of concrete all the way from the very edge of the bridge to the installation point underneath its "belly", where it will be connected to a predetermined pillar.[4][6] Then, using a pneumatic structure, the machine is moored to the first pillar to extend to the second one, anchoring to it, and place the beam.[4][3] The process would repeat itself until the bridge's foundations are completed.
The vehicle moves on a large 64x wheel drive system, which in itself is divided into four sections of 16 wheels each (forming two trucks, one at each end).[4][1] Each of the sections can rotate up to 90 degrees that let’s the machine drive sideways for efficiency when picking up beams.[6] The vehicle can maintain a top speed of 8 km/h (5 mph) unloaded, and 5 km/h (3 mph) carrying a bridge segment.[7]
The operational life of each vehicle is capable of building up to 730 spans before retiring.[6]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f Drummond-Roe, Cecilia (4 December 2017). "Engineering feat of the month: the SLJ900/32 bridge building machine". fircroft.com. Fircroft. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
- ^ Hedmond, Shane (20 October 2015). "Massive 580 Ton Chinese Girder Erection Machine Drops Girders Into Place From Above". Construction Junkie.
- ^ a b c Pittman, Kagan (27 October 2015). "Meet China's Bridge Building Robot". Engineering.com.
- ^ a b c d e "China's 640-Ton 'Iron Monster' Can Erect Colossal Bridges In a Few Days". Interesting Engineering. 16 November 2021.
- ^ "Automated Segmental bridge launching machine". Constrofacilitator. 17 July 2017.
- ^ a b c Jones, Kendall (19 June 2017). "Robot Machine that Builds Bridges". Planswift.com.
- ^ Calver, Tom (20 July 2018). "The mega-machines helping China link the world". BBC News. Article with animated diagram of functioning.