The Whakatane Radio Users Association asked our ISS Bay of Plenty branch to clear itscommunications site on the summit of Mt Pūtauaki, also known as Mt Edgecumbe.The job was to remove two 30 metre steel towers, a wooden mast, two buildingsand about 30 years’ worth of equipment and odds and ends that had built up onthe site.
On paper it sounds simple. Getting there was the hard part. The site sitsat the top of the mountain, reached by a 30 minute 4WD track followed by a 300metre climb up 150 steps. There’s no access for cranes or trucks, so everythinghad to come off by air.
The job took five months of planning. Our Kawerau team worked alongsideour rope access technicians, riggers and project planning team to get everystructure ready to lift, all under strict permit conditions. Working at heighton a remote summit with only foot access takes careful planning, and the prepwork done in the months beforehand is what made lift day run smoothly.
On lift day, Kahu’s Black Hawk helicopter made nine lifts to take thetowers, mast, buildings and equipment off the mountain.Everything came off themountain as planned.
Remote access, helicopter lifting and work at height are what our teamdoes best. This job brought our rigging, rope access and project planning teamstogether, from allparts of the country and it’s one the crew will remember fora long time. All while keeping our client happy, no HSE issues and everyonewent home safely with a awesome work story.
-CRL.avif)
