Firm Uses Telecrawlers on Major Chicago Jobs

Wed August 10, 2016
Crane Equipment Guide

II in One Contractors is a Chicago-based general contractor established in 1984. The company specializes in carpentry; excavation; form and place concrete; masonry; reinforcement steel placement; and structural steel erection. II in One recently had three Link-Belt 50-ton (45.3 t) TCC-500 telescopic crawler cranes pulling their weight on major construction projects for the city of Chicago.

95th/Dan Ryan Station

Terminal Improvements

One of the Chicago Transport Authority's busiest terminals, the 95th/Dan Ryan south terminal occupies the median of the Interstate 94/Dan Ryan Expressway and provides 24-hour Red Line train service and more than 1,000 CTA bus departures on a typical weekday.

II in One Contractors Inc. is using a TCC-500 to build 350 ft. (107 m) of retaining wall on both sides of the expressway to expand the station. The TCC-500 was chosen for its small footprint since only about 25 ft. (7.6 m) of right-of-way space is available with existing rail lines and expressway traffic. Also, light ground bearing pressure was required with buried gas, electric and communication utilities flanking the expressway where the crane must maneuver.

Constant slide slope and ground monitoring is in effect to make sure the area stays stable while the TCC-500 lowers long bundles of rebar to form 32 ft. (9.75 m) long constructed cages for retaining walls. Some of the cages weigh up to 12,000 lbs. (5 443.1 kg) and are then filled with concrete to complete each section of retaining wall.

O'Hare Airport Consolidated

Rental Car Facility

On the north side of town, foundational work is being completed for footings of a new nine-story parking structure that will house more than 6,800 parking spaces for rental cars and travelers to O'Hare Airport. The $783 million privately funded parking garage is being built on a 33-acre site that originally served as a surface lot.

The existing 4-in. (10.1 cm) asphalt base was left in place during foundation installation, creating a cleaner work site while 650 caissons are drilled for the foundation. The multi-level parking garage, a train station and rental car return facility will all be located under one roof.

The TCC-500s stay busy servicing on-site drill rigs. The drill rigs make a 2 ft. (.6 m) in diameter, 85 ft. (26 m) deep shaft; concrete is then pumped in the hole while extruding the auger. Then, 7,000 lb. (3 175 kg), 85 ft. (25.9 m) tall rebar cages are lowered down into the newly poured concrete by one of the two TCC-500s. The caissons are spaced 36 ft. (11 m) apart from each other in the main garage structure. For the train station structure the process is repeated, with 7 ft. (2.1 m) in diameter holes that go 66 ft. (20.1 m) deep.

“The [TCC-500] is very stable while traveling with the different loads. It's one of the best small rigs I've run in my 30 year experience. It is nice, tight and comfortable, especially for a smaller ton capacity crane,” said operator Ron Rusch.

President of II in One Contractors Inc., Robert McGee Jr., has been very satisfied with the use of the TCC-500 cranes. As Case Foundation's subcontractor, he is convinced that the TCC-500 crane configuration is the way to go for picking and carrying a load on the large 33-acre site.

“The TCC-500s have been awesome for us,” said McGee. “They're wonderful machines, and just so much more versatile than other types of cranes. The longest cages are 85 ft. long. To be able to pick up an 85-ft. tall cage and walk with it is just great, especially with one operator managing it. That's using quite a bit of its capacity. We're working them to the max constantly during 12 to 13 hour days.”

For more information, visit www.linkbelt.com.