Huge crane lift at BlueScope's No 5 blast furnace reline

The first of what could be two of the biggest crane lifts conducted in the Illawarra occurred at BlueScope Steel's No 5 blast furnace yesterday.Reline project director Phil Shoard said the carefully planned and engineered lift was performed by a giant 600-tonne crane brought in from Victoria.The heavy lift became necessary after workers looked inside the furnace's dust catcher and saw the diffuser needed to be replaced.Mr Shoard said yesterday's lift was done on a 120-tonne, 36m-high section that included the top of the dust catcher and the 15m high diffuser hanging below.Mr Shoard said when the new diffuser, already fabricated at Port Kembla, was ready for installation it would involve a 140-tonne lift.Crane operator Michael Schmidt said it was the second heaviest object the crane had lifted after Melbourne's 150-tonne giant ferris wheel. Tomorrow business editor Greg Ellis has more on where the $370 million reline is at, the increase in the workforce and the start of work on the $133 million sinter plant upgrade which began on Monday.