Four Hulking Units Carried from Port of Longview to Hillsboro on US West Coast
Heavy-lift specialist Omega Morgan was recently hired to transport four massive cold boxes along a 45-mile route from the Port of Longview in the US West Coast state of Washington to Hillsboro in Oregon.
The two heat exchangers, one argon cold box and one rectification cold box were carried two at a time over two consecutive weekends, with the largest of the loads measuring 82 metres long and weighing nearly 355 tonnes, including the transport vehicles.
The heat exchangers were hauled using the company’s 125-tonne and 150-tonne dual-lane trailers, along with a pull truck out front and a push track at the rear. The longer cold boxes were suspended between two, eight-line platform trailers to offer greater flexibility around turns, with pull and push trucks also deployed.
Several smaller storage and support units weighing up to 450 kilos a piece were also transported to the job site.
“With ten months to plan while the components were manufactured and made their way overseas, Omega Morgan prepared to deliver a world-class specialized transportation solution,” the Oregon-based company said.
The biggest challenge, the operator said, came from the sheer size of the components, which were more than five metres wide and four metres tall.
A temporary, elevated bridge over one section of the route had to be installed to handle the heaviest of the loads, while authorization from local utility firms had to be acquired to raise and reposition power and phone lines.
The move also called for multiple highway closures and a week-and-a-half of tree-trimming.
“Thanks to our team’s dedication to safety and efficiency, we delivered all four components on time, under budget and in great condition,” Omega Morgan said.
Omega Morgan and the Port of Longview will be exhibiting at Breakbulk Americas 2023, taking place on 26-28 September at the George R. Brown Convention Centre in Houston, Texas.
