Link-Belt crawler fleet proves to be sound investment for Alabama-based bridge contractor

Lexington, KY (April, 2005) - “Probably the best example of our 110 ton capacity LS-218H II would be a local emergency bridge replacement that we just completed a few months ago. An 18-wheel tanker truck, fully loaded with fuel exploded under a crossover bridge on the interstate. The resulting fire was hot enough to melt the steel support girders and totally destroy the structure,” said Vice-President Duncan Morris.

“The ink was hardly dry on the Alabama DOT contract before we had diverted our new Link Belt crane and rerouted it from another project. The job had both a strict completion timeline and a very heavy bonus/penalty clause. The completion timeline was for 63 days and either way from this timeline, either incentive or penalty, the figure was $50,000 a day. By working two 12-hour shifts around the clock, our crews, relying on Link-Belts as the lead cranes, finished the job in only 35 days. The total revenue on the job, including the early completion bonus, was roughly $6.5 million,” he added.

In fact, the emergency bridge replacement project was actually preceded with an eerily similar project only about two and a half years earlier at almost the precise location. The Morris Group rebuilt that bridge in 37 days under similar conditions and constraints with the aid of its highly motivated crews and several other Link-Belt cranes.

The Morris Group, a Birmingham, AL.-based bridge contractor relies a great deal on its fleet of modern heavy lift Link-Belt crawler cranes to help make the transition from building structural steel bridges to the currently more popular precast concrete structures, primarily with driven pile or drilled shaft caisson foundations.

“By the very nature of our business, all the cranes in our equipment spread must be dependable and multifunctional. We build bridges and drive pile and our men and machines must meet different challenges every week,” said Walter Morris, Sr.

“Initially I started the firm under my own name as a “dba” in 1987. We incorporated as The Morris Group in 1991 after my sons, Walter, Jr. (at left in photo above) and Duncan (right) came onboard. The best description of our business is that we are classified as a heavy and industrial contractor with primary specialties in both bridge building and pile driving. Our major cliental include state transportation departments and county and local municipalities. In the private sector we serve industrial and commercial accounts. A noteworthy amount of our work involves joint venture contracts and major subcontracting operations with other contractors,” he continued.

“We took a long time studying and testing what was available in the marketplace before we purchased our first Link-Belt crane. We were well aware that it would be a very large investment for a new company and we wanted to make sure that we did it right the first time. We were so happy with that machine that we decided to stay with Link-Belt cranes. Since that time, we’ve built on that relationship and have stayed with it.

"Back in the mid-1980’s there were a significant number of crane manufacturers producing machines and many equipment dealers out there selling them. The selection appeared almost endless. There were Link-Belt, Lima, Bucyrus Erie, P & H, Koehring, American, Manitowoc and others. It was imperative to us that the one we chose would still be around in the future when we needed them for parts and service. It’s interesting now to note that of the original group, only Manitowoc and Link-Belt are still in business. To us it is very comforting to know that our choice was and still is Link-Belt. We have gone through a few dealers but now it’s Atlantic Southern, and we are pleased,” continued the president and founder of the Morris Group.

“Unlike the old days, contractors use newer cranes on pile driving operations. With the increased use of swinging or hanging leads, the boom is isolated more compared to the older type fixed leads. This has greatly reduced the shock and impact to the boom,” explained Vice- President Duncan Morris.

The Morris Group uses its Link-Belt fleet for pile driving, concrete pouring using the crane and bucket technique and prestressed beam placement.

“We are building a pair of bridges in Russell County, Alabama. They are part of the new four lane Rte. 431 Bypass that goes all the way into Eufaula. Both 340’ long X 44’ wide bridges have 6’ diameter, 70’ deep drill shaft foundations. Both of the four north and south abutments have 12” H beam pile foundations which were driven with a D-19 Delmag diesel impact hammer using our new Link-Belt 218 HYLAB 5 crane. A load test indicated that the required bearing would be reached using 25 foot long pile. There were a total of 56 pile, or 14 for each abutment,” said Nathan Black, a Morris Group Superintendent.

Going on to another Morris Group site, Link-Belt cranes were observed again. “Our Link-Belt LS-218H II has played a large part in our safety record on this bridge. The operator’s view from the cab is excellent and that is important here because of its location. We are essentially working the new bridge from each side of a deep valley and the men are working at two different levels,” said Foreman Shane Sansom.

“We started the job at the end of December 2004 by demolishing the old nine span bridge that was built in 1938 over Hatchet Creek in Coosa County, Alabama.

"The new structure is a four span bridge. By eliminating five of the columns, the creek will flow smoother and flood less. There were no columns actually out in the creek itself. The new foundation consists of 4’ 6” drilled shafts. The upper shafts are 32 feet deep; the shafts down in the valley are 14 feet deep. Russo, LLC, from Birmingham has subcontracted the drilling and installation of these,” said Sansom.

On a third Morris Group bridge project in Jefferson County, Al., a Link-Belt LS-138H II crane was outfitted with 100’ of stick, 80’ of leads and a Delmag hammer for driving fourteen 30’ long 14” H pile for the abutment foundations for the new Rte 79 bridge in Pinson, Alabama. Superintendent Chris Brown said the piling was being driven to refusal when they encountered rock.

Not untypical for the Morris Group, orders came down to pull the Link-Belt crane off for a 24 hour period to drive several change order piling at another nearby bridge project. The company has found this “go anywhere, do anything” crane to be easily transportable enough to load out, set up and return to its original project without causing a major scheduling disruption. As Vice President Duncan Morris concluded, “just another reason why we own and operate a spread of Link-Belt cranes,”