Author Archives: Meredith Portman

About Meredith Portman

Meredith Portman is a freelance writer who specializes in heavy industry, healthcare and education.

SERVICE AND GRATITUDE

Posted on November 15, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Sunday was Veteran’s Day, a holiday that originated as Armistice Day to commemorate the agreement that ended World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. Its name was changed from Armistice Day to Veterans Day in 1954. This year’s holiday marked … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Barnhart, Veterans Day | Leave a comment

Steam Locomotive Moved with Care and Precision

Posted on October 24, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Barnhart is often called to move cargo large and small and sometimes even antique. Barnhart’s Spokane branch was hired to move a 1920’s era Forney steam locomotive from its site at the Pullman Depot Heritage Center in Pullman to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Heavy Lift | Tagged Barnhart Spokane, Inland Northwest Rail Museum, locomotive haul, Pullman Depot Heritage Center | Leave a comment

Blade Bar Revolutionizing Wind Projects

Posted on October 9, 2018 by Meredith Portman

You wouldn’t expect a crane company to devise a system for wind maintenance projects that requires fewer cranes, but that’s what we’ve done with our custom designed blade bar. The blade bar replaces the industry standard two crane method for … Continue reading →

Posted in Wind Industry | Tagged Barnhart, blade bar, wind turbine blade removal, wind turbine maintenance | Leave a comment

Broken Blade Removal A Multi-Branch Effort

Posted on September 21, 2018 by Meredith Portman

When a wind turbine blade breaks, removing it at over 300 feet from the ground can be a challenge. Barnhart was called to a wind farm in Illinois to remove a broken blade from a wind turbine. The other two … Continue reading →

Posted in Wind Industry | Tagged wind power, wind turbine blade removal, wind turbine maintenance | Leave a comment

Lock Gate Replacement Becoming a Barnhart Specialty

Posted on August 27, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Barnhart was recently hired for a project at the Holt Lock and Dam on the Black Warrior River in Alabama to remove and replace the lock’s lower mitre gate, our third lock replacement project in the past couple of years. … Continue reading →

Posted in Heavy Lift | Tagged barge crane, Big Al, Holt Lock and Dam, mitre gates removal, modular lift tower | Leave a comment

Barnhart Opens First Ohio Branch with Selinsky Acquisition

Posted on August 6, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Barnhart will expand its services into Ohio through a recent agreement with Selinsky Force based in Canton. Barnhart will purchase the company’s crane and rigging operations, including all associated personnel and equipment. Those resources include crane service with a lifting … Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged Barnhart, Canton, Crane service midwest, heavy haul service midwest, Ohio, rigging service midwest, Selinsky Force | Leave a comment

LOAD TESTING HELPS ENSURE PROJECT SAFETY

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Load testing of equipment is a critical operation and often a requirement under industry standards. It ensures safety of equipment, and most importantly, people. When should you do it? By ASME standards, all lifting equipment that has been fabricated, altered, … Continue reading →

Posted in Heavy Lift | Tagged below the hook testing, load testing, overhead crane testing, weld inspectors | Leave a comment

Barnhart Expands Service in the Northwest with Purchase of Strate Line

Posted on June 26, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Barnhart is adding its first Idaho location with the company’s recent agreement to purchase Strate Line Inc, a Coeur d’Alene, Idaho-based crane service company. The purchase will expand Barnhart’s ability to serve commercial, civil and heavy industrial customers in the northwestern … Continue reading →

Posted in News | Tagged Barnhart Spokane branch, crane service northwest, innovative rigging, project cargo logistics, Strate Line, Wind turbine | Leave a comment

Moving a Package Boiler with Inches to Spare

Posted on June 12, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Barnhart has an extensive video library of equipment demonstrations, projects and case studies. In the video case study below, Barnhart was hired for a job at a pulp & paper plant in the Midwest. The project involved receiving a 400,000-pound package … Continue reading →

Posted in Heavy Haul, Heavy Lift | Tagged heavy transportation and rigging, pulp and paper mill, video library | Leave a comment

Job of the Year: Innovation and Custom Fabrication

Posted on May 23, 2018 by Meredith Portman

Barnhart recently took home an SC&RA (Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association) Rigging Job of the Year award in the $750,000 to $2 million category. The company also received an award in the Under $150,000 category as well. The winning project … Continue reading →

Posted in Awards, Nuclear Power | Tagged Crawler cranes, custom fabrication, innovative engineering, nuclear power, Pull-Up Gantries, SC&RA Rigging Job of the Year, SCRA Job of the Year, telescoping hydraulic crane | Leave a comment