This 500,000-gallon sphere at one of our nation’s finest military bases needed a boost of additional pressure to better operate within the water system. Phoenix was contracted to raise this structure by 33’-9“. Our engineers devised a critical lift plan that used two hydraulic cranes to raise the tank, a third crane to add the new stem section, and a fourth crane for moving pieces about the site. This challenging operation was safely completed, and the cranes were released from the structure the same day that Phoenix crews worked to secure the new section in place.

Typically, when an elevated water storage tank reaches its life expectancy, options are limited to demolishing the structure and re-building new. But what do you do when only the container portion is bad while the support structure is in perfectly good shape—and you cannot go more than a week without your valuable resource?

This was the situation for Century Aluminum’s 100,000-gallon elevated water tank. Production demands allowed only a small window of time for the plant to operate without it. Century turned to Phoenix to develop a time-saving solution. After analyzing the existing structure, Phoenix designed and built a new container on the ground adjacent to the tank. We painted the interior and exterior, complete with logos, all while the new container was on the ground.

Once the replacement container was ready, the existing tank was drained and the container was cut and removed from the structure. Just as the old container was set on the ground, the crane swung to the new container, already rigged, and placed it atop the support structure. It all happened within hours, allowing the connection points to be welded quickly into place with minimal coating touch-ups. The tank was returned to service within 48 hours of cutting loose, and the re-coating of the support structure continued to completion.

In 2011, the City of Arlington, TX, needed a solution to correct a lack of sufficient water pressure in their 2,000,000-gallon sphere. The City turned to Phoenix to help solve their problem. Not only did the City have a pressure problem, but available space around the site was non-existent to deploy large hydraulic cranes to hoist the tank and place additional steel into place to make the structure taller.

After multiple site visits to complete an engineering analysis of the existing structure and foundation, Phoenix turned to its proprietary, hydraulic tank-jacking system with a plan to safely raise the 2,000,000-gallon tank 11 ft. The system operated internally from a structural girder designed and installed by Phoenix.

After multiple rounds of engineering verification and safety checking, and with hydraulics and surrounding hoists in place for load stabilization, Phoenix cut the tank loose in the stem section at 7 AM. The new stem sections were then put into place, and the tank was deemed secure by 11 PM that same evening.

In approximately 16 hours, Phoenix solved the pressure problem in a safe and efficient manner.

As a continually growing college campus, Penn State University needed to improve its water supply system. As part of this upgrade, Phoenix was contracted to raise each of the two large tanks an additional 16 ft. to accommodate greater head pressures.

Due to restrictive site conditions and adjacent structures, there was insufficient space to raise Tank 3, a 1,000,000-gallon sphere, using conventional hydraulic cranes. So Phoenix engineers developed a plan and tailored equipment to raise the tank with hydraulic cylinders. Once the tank was lifted, Phoenix crews worked to add the new stem sections and properly secure it before relieving the hydraulics.

The site was large enough to raise Tank 4, a 1,500,000-gallon, multi-column tank, using conventional hydraulic cranes. Phoenix engineered a plan that utilized six cranes to accommodate the 800,000-pound lift. The plan covered not only the engineering function of the lift but also the constant close communication among the operators, enabling them to work safely in unison. Once the tank was lifted, Phoenix crews added new leg and riser sections to it before relieving the cranes.