Wisconsin Builder - Edward Kraemer overcomes that sinking feeling

Edward Kraemer overcomes that sinking feeling

By Chris Thompson

Project fact

The fear of piers sinking into the riverbed prevented Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc. from using traditional falsework to build replacement spans adjacent to the existing bridge, so the company will float out the old spans and float in the replacements.

Nobody thought the bridge would sink 19 inches, but it did.

Just like that, Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc., Plain, abandoned its traditional bridge replacement for Canadian Pacific Railway's structure over the Black River in La Crosse because it's not a big step from a sinking bridge to disrupted rail traffic. And if there was one thing the railroad company, based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, couldn't afford on this $11.5 million job, it was disrupted traffic.

"You couldn't even put a dollar figure on it," said Dennis Maney, Kraemer's senior project manager on the job. "This is CP's main line from Chicago through Minneapolis. The impact of disrupting service would just be astronomical. The whole focus on everything we do is working safely and no disruptions of service."

In November, Kraemer signed onto the project to replace portions of the 307-foot, single-track rail bridge. The structure had a 300-foot swing span and 250-foot approach spans on either side.

Kraemer's job was to replace the swing span with a 150-foot rolling bascule span, redo 180 feet of the approaches on either side and add two conventional bridge spans to the reconstructed structure, Maney said. The plan called for building a falsework next to the bridge for the new spans, but 19 inches later, it was time to move onto the more innovative approach of floating the old spans out and the new spans in.

And that set the project up for a crucial three-day phase early next year.

"We're going to do a 72-hour switch in March 2004," Maney said. "We'll float out the swing span and float in the bascule. We'll do removal work and then float in two conventional bridge spans. That's going to be a big three days, plus we have to make sure it all works."

Project Specs

Project Name: Black River Bridge Replacement; Location: La Crosse; General Contractor: Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc., Plain; Engineer: HNTB Corp., Kansas City; Owner: Canadian Pacific Railway, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Project Cost: $11.5 million; Start Date: November 2002; Scheduled Completion: May 2004	Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc. is facing the challenge of replacing a railroad bridge over the Black River in La Crosse without restricting rail traffic for the owner, Canadian Pacific Railway. Dennis Maney, Kraemer's senior project manager, said challenges on the job have made the team feel like it's taking “two steps forward and one step back.”
Photos courtesy of Edward Kraemer & Sons Inc.

Edward Kraemer overcomes that sinking feeling

By Chris Thompson

Project Specs