Mediaco Maxilift has completed a technically demanding lifting operation on Lot 3 of Toulouse Metro Line C, extracting a 150-tonne tunnel boring machine cutterhead from a 30-metre-deep shaft in the centre of the city.
The lift formed part of construction of the new metro line, which will connect Colomiers with Labège and represents one of the major infrastructure projects currently underway in the Toulouse metropolitan area.
Mediaco deployed a Liebherr LG 1750 lattice-boom mobile crane for the operation. In the selected configuration, the crane provided 163 tonnes of lifting capacity, excluding the hook block and rigging.
The LG 1750 was assembled in SPSL configuration with a 42-metre SL boom, a 16 x 16 metre outrigger footprint and 250 tonnes of counterweight with extension. A 2 x 200-tonne hook block was used to handle the cutterhead.
The operation was complicated by the highly constrained nature of the site. Located in a residential area between the Canal du Midi and Toulouse’s fire station, available space for crane assembly and lifting activities was limited.
Noise restrictions added another planning consideration, with no noisy operations permitted between 22:00 and 06:00.
Careful engineering and lift preparation were therefore required to bring the 150-tonne component from the bottom of the 30-metre shaft to surface safely.
The operation highlights the heavy lifting requirements involved in Toulouse’s Line C programme as tunnelling and underground construction continue across the project.
