Heaviest machinery lift in Malaysia completed

Mammoet was contracted by Nippon Express to lift a 1,210-ton DEEP AGR Absorber as part of the construction of a Petrochemical plant by Petronas in Sarawak, Malaysia. Mammoet was selected for the job because of its engineering expertise and extensive experience with similar components.

The absorber, a plant component that is used to purify gas, is the largest and heaviest component that has ever been lifted in the history of Sarawak. The lifting operation was a ‘top and tail’ operation. The top section of the 55-meter-long absorber was lifted using specialized lifting equipment called a gantry system, while the other end of the absorber was being driven into position with an auxiliary crane. It took roughly 5 hours to complete the lift.

Petronas/JGC is planning to complete the construction of the petrochemical plant in a record-setting 33 months. With several modules being constructed simultaneously at their facilities, there was little space to erect the gantry system, while deadlines were tight. To save time and make the best use of limited space, the gantry system was assembled in modules at different parts of the yard. In spite of challenging weather and space constraints, the system was assembled in only 24 days, a week sooner than planned.

Mammoet had a leading role in advising the customer in this process and assuring every detail of the system was clear to everyone involved. The project was scheduled to take three months to execute. 

Through careful planning and ‘first-time-right’ execution, the project was finished safely two weeks ahead of schedule.