Austria-based crane company Prangl has used its Liebherr LTM 1250-6.1 mobile crane to lift a dome and a 6-tonne bell from Saint Adalbert’s cathedral in Esztergom, Hungary.
With its 72-m boom extension, the 250-tonne crane lifted the cathedral’s south tower roof structure and lowered it to the ground, enabling the crane to lift the bell from the tower. Liebherr said that to avoid damage to the windows and walls, the entire roof structure of the dome had to be removed.
Due to limited space, the operation took place above a basement construction, in which steel base plates were fitted under the crane’s supports to ensure safe working conditions.
“The time pressure was particularly challenging on this job. For the complete operation – all tower and bell parts had to be lifted out – the time window was limited to less than two days. The original plan was to use a smaller crane with an auxiliary boom. However, due to the time pressure, this was not possible,” said Gábor Kopasz, Prangl Budapest.
Prangl has been commissioned to perform the lifting operations for the cathedral’s reconstruction, planned for spring 2023.
According to Liebherr, Saint Adalbert’s is Hungary’s largest church.
