Vanguard Heavy Lift has successfully relocated a 650-ton (589.7-tonne) former South African navy submarine.
Decommissioned in 2003, the SAS Assegaai needed to be transported 1.5 km from the navy dockyard to the new naval heritage site in Simon’s Town.
With a length of 58 m and a width of 6 m, Vanguard engineered a solution using 34 axles to lift, transport and position the submarine.
With 2 x 9 axles in the forward position and 2 x 8 axle lines at the aft, the trailers were used to lift the cargo from the dockyard’s synchro lift, relocate the vessel, place it over the premade plinths and lower it into its final position.
According to the company, it faced extreme weather conditions during the move.
“Due to the nature of our work, we always build contingencies into every project we undertake, but the weather conditions are not something that we can control,” said Andy Seleke, field manager at Vanguard.
