TEL recently worked in close cooperation with overseas partner to deliver 10 units of cranes from Northern China to a jobsite in Amurskaya in Russia by low-bed trucks.

Normally March is still the frozen time in Northern China. Heilongjiang, the border river between China and Russia is frozen, too. A steel structuered floating bridge is set up on the ice every winter by the local authority and is the only passage for people and traffic to cross the border when the ferry service is unavailable. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the border was shut and only trucks loaded with daily necessities were permitted to cross the border. The supplier delivered the cranes to the warehouse near the border but all border-crossing operations were the consignee’s responsibility. The cranes had been sitting in the warehouse for many days with nobody able to handle the on-carriage to the destination.

Each crane is nearly 45 ton and measures 14.100 x 3.300 x 3.789m. The weight of the cranes was just on the limit of the bridge’s capacity. As well as this, the COVID-19 restrictions of people’s movement had become another challenge as the drivers would not be allowed to return after delivery of cranes across the border.

TEL monitored the weather forcast and learned a cold storm was coming in the 4th week of March which certainly would reinforce the ice. So they used their relationship with the relevant authorities to assess the capacity of the floating bridge and had the driving operations approved. As a result of careful organization and planning, 10 cranes were delivered to the jobsite on 7 April after overcoming challenges of the limited bridge capacity and restrictions on people’s movement.

The right people at the right time and right place have made the impossible possible!