The Left Coast Lifter, a barge-mounted crane capable of muscling more than 1,900 tons, passed through the Panama Canal on Jan. 17 during a 5,700-nautical-mile journey from San Francisco to Tarrytown, N.Y., where it will be used to build the new Tappan Zee Bridge.
A joint venture of American Bridge and Fluor custom-built the shear-leg crane, costing roughly $50 million, for the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge's east-span replacement, which opened to traffic last September.
Weighing in at more than 4,200 tons and sporting twin 328-ft-long booms, the rig is powered by three 806-horsepower main generators. A joint venture of American Bridge, Fluor, Granite Construction and Traylor Bros. is building the new Tappan Zee Bridge.