Marr completes project milestone

The BlueScope No. 6 Blast Furnace (6BF) Reline Project has reached a major milestone with Marr Contracting’s M2480D Heavy Lift Luffing tower crane successfully removing the 6BF downcomer in a carefully planned engineering feat at the Port Kembla Steelworks (PKSW).

The removal of the 170-tonne, 54-metre long downcomer was safely completed using the 330-tonne capacity M2480D, with Marr’s 400-tonne Grove mobile crane used to assist with rotating the downcomber once it had be lowered to ground level.

Once removed and lowered to the ground by the M2480D, the downcomer was horizontally rotated and placed on Marr-supplied supports and reconfigured to be transported for refurbishment and replacement.

Engineered and planned by the BlueScope Reline Project team in collaboration with Marr, the innovative heavy lifting solution provided a less complex and safer alternative to using a traditional heavy lift crawler approach.

With previous experience removing similar sections of plant on a similarly congested worksite during the Blast Furnace No.5 Reline Project, BlueScope’s team knew that using a large crawler crane and superlift combination would present numerous challenges due to the location of the project and the restricted space available on the site.

According to PKSW Project Director, Justin Reed, “Marr’s team have challenged our traditional thinking by enabling large sections of equipment that were previously maintained in situ to be lifted to ground for repairs or replacement.”

“The capability and capacity of the M2480D is a true game-changer for our project. At vertical industrial sites like a Blast Furnace we have always wished there was a ‘sky-hook’ that could deliver a lift at any point on the plant, and now we have a solution with significant lifting capacity,” Mr Reed said.

With safety and minimising disruption to production at PKSW a priority, Marr’s solution is also helping to mitigate risk to critical path by providing BlueScope with an instant cranage solution for a large volume of smaller lifts at site during the relining process.

Installed on a specifically-design 7.5 x 7.5m piled foundation, the M2480D provides the heavy lifting capacity required with the additional benefits of a small footprint and long reach across the project.

“By engaging us early in the planning stages, BlueScope’s team unlocked the possibility to develop a simple solution that helped to reduce complexity and secure the tight construction program.” said Marr’s Managing Director, Simon Marr.

The refurbished downcomer will be reinstalled in another major lifting operation using Marr’s M2480D in mid-2025.

BlueScope anticipates that the 6BF will be recommissioned in mid-2026.