The Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association awarded the Hauling Job of the Year Awards to Berard Transportation, Loreauville, La., for a moving job and Emmert International, Clackamas, Ore., for both the Hauling over 160,000 Pounds category and the Hauling under 160,000 Pounds category.


Moving jobs feature specialized equipment such as self-propelled transported dollies and crawler assemblies. Hauling jobs involve regular licensed tractors and trailers, moving predominantly via public roadways.

Moving Job: Berard

Berard Transportation provided transportation and rigging services to move the world's largest flood sector gates from the fabricator's yard in Houston to the final operating position in waters south of New Orleans, La.

The scope of the project included loading out at the fabricator's plant, designing the barge transport plan, receiving the floodgates from cranes and installing the floodgates to span 225 feet across the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. Each of the two 690-ton floodgates measured 130 feet long by 120 feet wide by 32 feet high.

Berard's team devoted 510 hours of engineering time over the course of eight months in 2011 under strict monitoring by the Army Corps of Engineers.

Over 160,000 Pounds: Emmert International

Emmert International transported for ConocoPhillips four mammoth reddish, barrel-shaped coke drum sections from the Port of Longview Washington to a refinery in Billings, Mont. Two weighed 410,150 pounds and measured 47 feet, 9 inches long by 25 feet, 1 inch in diameter, and two weighed 350,600 pounds and measured 50 feet, 4 inches long by 25, feet 1 inch in diameter.

The two transport trailers were named "Lewis" and "Clark" in honor of the two explorers who followed the same route-now U.S. Highway 12 along the Lochsa River in northern Idaho-on their Corps of Discovery Expedition in the early 1800s. The 224-foot long trailers, built around the drums, moved on 32 axles and 128 tires. Like their namesakes, they encountered snow and ice along with subzero temperatures and spring floods.

Because of permit restrictions and weather conditions, the first two coke drum shipments included 31 days of actual driving and took more than 60 days to complete. The second pair of coke drums was delayed because of weather and spring runoff and arrived in Billings in June.

Under 160,000 Pounds: Emmert International

From April to July, Emmert International moved seven compressor skids from the manufacturer's plant in Midland, Texas, to the project site in Tupman, Calif. Each compressor weighed 140,000 pounds and measured 44 feet 7 inches long by 19 feet 4 inches wide by 12 feet 10 inches tall. Emmert's logistics team and engineers developed a transport plan and specially designed vehicle for crossing 2,180 miles over four states.

Running simultaneously because of a tight delivery schedule, the two transport vehicles consisted of a specially designed dolly frame with six dollies per frame and a gas powered hydraulic power unit, used for controlling the steering and leveling of the transport vehicles. Four of the six dollies would be Emmert steerable-type and the other two would be caster-type dollies.

Because of the extreme Texas heat, the first leg of the journey required movement at night. Also, that timing minimized the impact on school traffic and the general public. During this three-night portion of the transport, special precautions had to be taken to entirely avoid damage to any wires, traffic lights, other overhead obstructions, the compressors or the transport equipment due to impaired visibility, even with additional lighting, and the shadows cast from the lights of the vehicles.

For more information, go to www.scranet.org.