Lanky Dennis, a familiar sight to commuters that do daily battle with Auckland’s Northwestern motorway, is being sacked and sold off.
The massive yellow lifting gantry affectionately known as Dennis has been using its mechanical muscle to lift 277 precast super T beams into place on the ramps that will connect the new Waterview tunnels with the motorway.
The ramps will form part of NZ Transport Agency’s epic Waterview Connection, due to open in 2017.
Dennis will finish his time with the project towards the end of May, when the last beams are placed.
The Italian-built gantry was custom-made for the Well-Connected Alliance, which is responsible for the interchange and tunnel system that will marry up Auckland’s Northwestern and Southern motorways.
The 98-metre-long, 140-tonne gantry is named in memory of a 33-year-old worker who died of cancer, and is painted yellow to recognise a partnership between Well-Connected and the Cancer Society.
“The gantry has eliminated the need for conventional cranes which would have needed to have been moved into place at the start of a work shift at night and then taken away before the morning traffic peaks,” says Transport Agency highway manager, Brett Gliddon.
The role involves moving precast concrete beams weighing close to 70 tonnes each and lowering them into place between the interchange’s 55 supporting columns. Dennis being on the job has saved time on the project, says Gliddon and avoids using a crane in an environmentally sensitive area.
“There is no doubt that Dennis has done its job perfectly.”
Those who need a 140-tonne gantry for business or domestic use can bid for Dennis and numerous other bits of gear from the project on TradeMe.
