Heavy Lifting News
Case Studies on Innovative Problem Solving
A 50-Year-Old Bridge and a 3-Inch Problem
10/21/2025
When a 2023 inspection revealed complete bearing failure on the 50-year-old Glebe Road overpass, Bermuda’s primary infrastructure contractor, Sunrise Construction Ltd., knew the 220-ton bridge deck needed to be lifted for bearing replacement. The job presented an immediate, non-negotiable requirement: synchronous lifting. Any uneven force applied during the lift would risk cracking the concrete deck, turning a bearing replacement operation into a multi-million-dollar reconstruction.
Sunrise turned to Engineered Rigging (ER) for a solution, but two significant obstacles immediately ruled out conventional jacking methods:
- Geometric Constraint: The complete bearing failure left less than three inches of clearance between the steel girders and the abutment. Standard hydraulic cylinders for a required four-inch lift simply wouldn’t fit.
- Structural Challenge: The bottom flange of each girder had been encased in concrete for five decades. Applying jacking force to this concrete risked the exact structural cracking the synchronous lift was meant to prevent. The lift force had to be applied directly to the steel.
Photo Source: The Royal Gazette
Engineering Around the Impossible
Faced with these constraints, Engineered Rigging’s team partnered with Sunrise to develop a design-build solution that addressed both problems simultaneously. The key was a custom fabricated Synchronous Lift System. Rather than jacking at the bearing locations, we designed six specialized lift beams. These beams were engineered to be temporarily welded directly between the bridge girders.
This custom configuration achieved two things:
- Deliberate, strong lifting points directly on the steel structure, bypassing the vulnerable concrete encasement.
- Distributed design allowing ample access for hydraulic cylinders that could provide the necessary stroke for a four-inch lift.
Between March and June, the ER and Sunrise teams refined the design, completed the fabrication of the custom beams, and secured approval from Bermuda’s Ministry of Public Works and Environment. The meticulous engineering phase ensured the design accounted for the 50-year-old girders and precise load distribution under the 220-ton structure.
Precision Equipment for a Single-Move Lift
With the custom lift beams fabricated, equipment selection focused on guaranteeing the required synchronous accuracy. Engineered Rigging supplied 13 high-tonnage hydraulic cylinders (Enerpac HCL506) for their optimal blend of capacity, stroke length and the unique ability to be mechanically locked for safety after lifting. The cylinders were powered by a networked Synchronous Lift System utilizing three Enerpac Split-Flow Pumps.
This system was the critical differentiator: it is not a manual setup. The networked controller actively monitors and controls the position of every cylinder, automatically compensating for any variation to maintain uniform lifting across the entire bridge deck. A few millimeters could mean the difference between success and structural failure. Precision was non-negotiable.
“The successful lifting of the Glebe Road Bridge was the most technically demanding part of this repair, and it required that we use the best equipment available,” said Bernard Kunst, General Manager of Sunrise Construction. “Engineered Rigging supplied us with the robust, specialized jacking systems that ensured a stable and secure lift, allowing our crews to execute the bearing change efficiently and on schedule.”
Execution: The Payoff of Planning
On July 8, the equipment (including the custom beams, high-tonnage cylinders, and the synchronous lift system) shipped from our Equipment Depot in Arkansas. ER Field Technician, Taylor Brown, arrived on July 23 to manage the equipment setup and provide critical on-site technical support. The physical lifting operation unfolded across four days, with the completion of the south side lift and bearing replacement on July 27. The entire operation, including welding, took just nine days for execution. This fast, successful outcome was the direct result of the three months spent on front-end planning, engineering analysis, and custom fabrication. For complex rigging, success is determined long before the equipment arrives on-site.
Sunrise Construction’s Bernard Kunst explained, “The presence of an Engineered Rigging expert was a strategic decision that reinforced our commitment to safety and quality. Their guidance ensured the specialized equipment was utilized correctly, giving us complete confidence in the integrity of the lift and allowing our team to focus purely on the structural repair work.”
A New Standard for Infrastructure Maintenance
The Glebe Road project is a powerful case study for aging infrastructure worldwide. When standard equipment and conventional methods failed to meet structural and geometric demands, the solution was not improvisation or forcing the equipment to fit, it was engineering. This project was successful because the total solution provided:
- Custom fabrication
- Precision rental equipment
- On-site technical support
As Christopher Cox, PE, President of Engineered Rigging, shared: “When conventional methods won’t work, it’s time to step back, analyze the actual constraints and engineer solutions that address the specific problems at hand.”
The 50-year-old bridge is back in service, and its lifespan renewed. The visible outcome is unnoticed, but the problem-solving beneath the surface represents the rigorous, integrated approach that modern infrastructure maintenance increasingly requires.
Learn More
For more insight on the topic of customized solutions, see the Tech Talk article on The Missing Link for Many Construction Challenges.
Featured Equipment & Services
In addition to providing expert engineering services and custom fabrication, Engineered Rigging supplied bare rental equipment and onsite technical support for this project.
To request a quote to buy or rent equipment, or find a solution for your heavy lifting project, please contact our heavy lifting experts at 844.474.4448 or sales@engrigging.com.
