Ballina fleet grows for Pacific Highway upgrade
15 March 2018
Universal Cranes’ Ballina branch has expanded its local fleet and upgraded the Tyndale depot to support the ongoing Pacific Highway upgrade activity in the region.
Two brand new cranes, including a 40T Terex AC40 2L (pictured above) and a 100T GMK5100 have been added to the fleet in 2018. The brand new Terex arrived in February. Universal Cranes Ballina branch owner Colleen Lang, said demand for the new crane meant it went straight to work upon arrival in Ballina.
“As the only supplier of this type of crane in the region, the new Terex was required immediately at Duck Creek to support the ongoing Pacific Highway Upgrade works. We expect both the new Terex and Grove machines to be very busy.”
The AC40 2L continues to work at the Duck Creek site, just outside Ballina. The much anticipated Grove GMK5100 arrived in early March and will also likely go immediately to work on Pacific Highway Upgrade works.
The Pacific Highway Upgrade is one of the most significant road infrastructure projects in New South Wales history. Six months ago, this project prompted Universal Cranes Ballina to upgrade to the Tyndale depot which originally opened two years ago less than a kilometre from the Tyndale interchange section.
The accommodation and office facilities have been upgraded which will also provide a base of operations for Universal Cranes’ crawler cranes while they work on the highway.
Universal Cranes is supplying crawler cranes ranging from 80T to 750T on multiple projects across the Woolgoolga to Ballina section of the upgrade. This section of the highway upgrade includes 155km of four-lane divided road, ten split-level interchanges, and more than 100 bridges. The Harwood and Richmond River bridge projects will also require the use of Universal Cranes’ AMS 1803 Barge set.
A 26km section between Woolgoolga and Glenugie opened to traffic in October 2017. The remaining 129 km of the Woolgoolga to Ballina section is expected to open by 2020. The completion of the Woolgoolga to Ballina stretch will mark the end of the almost quarter-century long Pacific Highway upgrade. Universal Cranes is excited to be part of such a historically significant project.