Replacing the chillers in a high-rise building doesn’t normally come with a history lesson. But, if you were in downtown Cleveland at the right time in recent weeks, you might have witnessed a little history in the making without even realizing it.
Nearly 50 years after construction of the city’s 35-floor PNC Center, some of the same companies involved back then returned to the site in order to replace those air conditioning system chillers. The occurrence speaks to the deep roots both firms have in the community – and to a continuity of service that such longevity provides.
ALL Erection & Crane Rental, the flagship branch of the ALL Family of Companies, provided heavy lift equipment for the project. Shippers Highway Express handled rigging, logistics, and more. Both companies were there during the original construction, which took place between 1978 and 1980 (when the building was known as National City Center).
Back then, ALL used a Manitowoc 4100 crawler crane with a boom that topped out at 250-feet. No longer in production, for years the 4100 was a workhorse of the construction industry. For the more recent lift operations, ALL used a Liebherr LTM 1450-8.1 all-terrain crane to remove the old chillers, and a Liebherr LTM 1300-6.3 to place the new chillers.
There are many contrasts between then and now that demonstrate the technological advances made in both cranes and chillers in the ensuing 45 years. The capacity of the Manitowoc 4100 was 230 tons. The Liebherr LTM 1450 has a capacity of 550 tons, while the 1300’s capacity is 330 tons. The higher-capacity 1450 was needed to remove the old chillers because each weighed in at approximately 36,000 pounds – while the new, replacement chillers do the same job but do so at a slim 14,000 pounds.
There’s also the fact that, when the original chillers were placed, the building was still under construction, making crane placement at street level and chiller placement on the roof easier. For the more recent operation, a section of wall had to be removed from the 18th floor.
A lifting platform was rigged to the cranes for both removal of old and placement of new. Mike Paolone, project manager for Shippers Highway Express, says his team had to split each of the three retiring chillers in half to make the loads light enough for the platform, which can accommodate 20,000 pounds. Halving the old units brought their weight down to 18,000 pounds.
Because operations required closing busy East 9th Street in downtown Cleveland, the project was performed in five phases over strategically chosen days, mostly evenings and weekends. The quick set up of the Liebherr all-terrain cranes and fewer truckloads required for delivery made them ideal for these circumstances.
Brian Meek, sales representative for ALL, says a crucial consideration for his crane operator was deflection in the boom that occurs naturally during lifts. “Think of a crane boom as a fishing pole,” said Meek. “With weight suspended from the boom, there will be a downward curve. When that load is removed, the boom will straighten.”
Crane booms are designed and made to accommodate deflection, but use of the lifting platform – and the relatively small, 75-inch hole through which the chillers had to be placed – made for delicate work.
Shippers’ riggers and ALL’s operator were in constant radio contact to keep the load level, and to assist the crane operator in making the necessary adjustment as chillers were off-loaded to keep the platform in a consistent position at the passageway.
Knowing their companies’ respective histories with the PNC Building made the project stand out for both Meek and Paolone.
“ALL just celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2024, so capping off the year with a project like this, knowing we’d been there at the very beginning, really resonated with me,” said Meek.
“The last of the guys that was here at Shippers Highway when this building went up just retired last year,” said Paolone. “It’s not unusual for us to return to work on structures from the 1980s and 90s, but something dating back to the 70s … that’s special.”
PHOTOS COURTESY OF SHIPPERS HIGHWAY EXPRESS
