Heavy Lifting News

Case Studies on Innovative Problem Solving

Top 5 Rigging Stories of the Year

12/10/2025

Heavy lifting projects happen every day, but some demand more than routine execution. Whether it’s an oversized load, tight site constraints, or field conditions that don’t match the plans, certain jobs push the limits of what’s standard. This issue revisits five of Engineered Rigging’s 2025 case studies where the challenges—and solutions—are worth a closer look.

Assembling Blue Origin’s New Glenn Rocket

At Cape Canaveral, every step toward launch is a scientific endeavor. When it came time to assemble Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, the challenge was clear: How do you connect two gargantuan stages with a margin of error measured in millimeters? This article goes behind the scenes of rocket lifting to reveal how the tools used to build a rocket are often just as critical as the rocket itself.

Rising to the Occasion: Innovative Bridge Launchings

Temporary truss bridges are fast becoming standard in civil and utility projects as they enable traffic to continue to flow over a water way or valley while a new bridge is being constructed. Barnard Construction Company approached Engineered Rigging in search of a safer, more efficient approach to a jack and crib lowering operation.

HRSG Harp Replacement Is Music to Power Plant’s Ears

Inside of the Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG) at the Northeastern Power Station in Oklahoma, four harps, each weighing 30 tons, needed to be lowered five feet for removal, while new harps needed to be lifted five feet into position. What sounded like a relatively simple operation was complicated by the low clearance above each harp and a congested work space.

A 50-Year-Old Bridge and a 3-Inch Problem

A routine bridge bearing replacement in Bermuda quickly escalated into a complex engineering challenge, requiring a custom fabrication, precision rigging equipment rental, and on-site technician to lift a 220-ton concrete deck without cracking it. When a 2023 inspection revealed complete bearing failure on the 50-year-old Glebe Road overpass, two significant obstacles immediately ruled out conventional jacking methods. Keep reading to learn about the challenges and solution in our latest case study.

5 Challenges, 4 Piers, 1 Massive Bridge Project

After decades of erosion caused by the constant current, four concrete bridge piers needed to be deconstructed on the Waccamaw Memorial Bridge in South Carolina. This was no ordinary demolition, as the project’s complexity was heightened by five key factors.