Mammoet deployed its SK series crane to support modular construction of the Zayed National Museum on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, enabling complex heavy lifts across a live and congested construction site.
Developed by the Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, the museum forms part of the Saadiyat Cultural District and features five wing shaped towers inspired by falconry. To manage the architectural complexity, the project team adopted a modular construction approach that reduced work at height and accelerated installation timelines.
Mammoet was engaged early by the BESIX and Trojan General Contracting joint venture to develop a lifting strategy for prefabricated gallery pods and wing structures. While a crawler crane was initially considered, site constraints and surrounding activities led engineers to propose the high capacity SK crane as a more efficient solution.
With its long outreach, the SK crane could be positioned away from the busiest work zones while still reaching lift points inside the structure. This helped reduce congestion, maintain safe lifting operations and allow parallel construction activities to continue without disruption.
The crane was deployed in two configurations, first as an SK350 and later reconfigured to an SK190 to match changing site conditions and footprint requirements. In both cases it operated with a 135 metre main boom, performing lifts of up to 612 tonnes at radii exceeding 150 metres.
Custom adjustable rigging using strand jacks enabled precise tilting and positioning of irregular modules within tight spaces. Mammoet said the engineered lifting approach supported safe and efficient installation while maintaining ground stability and minimising site preparation.
The project highlights the role of high capacity land based cranes in delivering complex architectural builds through modular construction methods.
