Over the last three years, the new Trump International Hotel and Tower has made its way upward, alongside the Chicago River in the heart of the city. Designed as a combination hotel and residential building, it is one of the largest construction projects recently seen in Chicago, and has been developed enough to avoid the disruptions that the recession brought to the building sector.The building is 92 floors high and includes an architectural spire on its peak. The installation of this spire presented an interesting technical challenge, and the chosen solution was the use of a helicopter to lift the sections into place. Two tower cranes were involved in the construction of the building, but they were not suitable for the additional height of the spire. Before being disassembled, one of the tower cranes was used to lift various spire segments to the roof for storage until the installation could begin.

Arranging the installation was no small task. Installation Services was the selected contractor and they, in turn, contracted Construction Helicopters of Howell, Mich., to provide the helicopter lift. The spire itself was designed and built by Tower Innovations of Indiana. Undertaking a lift of this type in the center of Chicago requires considerable coordination. Aside from the various parts of the installation team, there are weather considerations, the City of Chicago has to issue permits, the police have to close local streets and, since the building is on the Chicago River, the Police also have to block the river to traffic while the lift is in progress. In addition, given the number of pieces to the spire and the varying weights, it was necessary for the helicopter to manage its fuel load to maximize payload when required and to ensure that sufficient time was available to undertake each part of the operation. This dictated several refueling breaks throughout the operation. The team hoped that these fuel breaks could happen onsite using a fuel truck, but the city vetoed that idea. Instead, it was necessary to shuttle to and from Midway Airport for refueling.The aircraft used was a Sikorsky S-61. This specific helicopter was originally used in the passenger sector in England. Prior to being bought by Construction Helicopters, it was modified for its new role as a lift aircraft. The fuselage was shortened, because passenger capacity was no longer an issue, which saved weight. Additionally, the sponsons and retractable gear were replaced by a more simple fixed gear. The lifting cables were attached to the pickup points, allowing it to lift up to 10,000 lbs. It also received new Carson rotor blades that improved performance across the envelope.

The Big Lift

The first attempt was made Dec. 13, 2008, and it wasn’t a lucky day. Conditions were less than ideal with strong gusting winds and a relatively low cloud base. After the teams on the ground had been briefed and the local FAA office was satisfied that the procedures in place were suitable, the aircraft made a reconnaissance run. This involved testing the conditions over the building to see whether it was even worth attempting the lift. Despite the difficult conditions, Pilot Michael Burnett decided to give it a shot. They first went to fuel up and then returned to the site.The crew did an excellent job of positioning the load, but with the increasingly gusty Chicago winds, it was not possible to keep the section in place. As this was the heaviest and most stable piece of the tower, the weather would only get worse. Consequently, the decision was made to return the piece to the roof storage and scrub the mission for the day. Another attempt was scheduled for the following morning but the conditions were even worse. For the next few weeks, delays were either the result of permitting issues, conflicts with other work, public holidays, or ongoing bad weather. Who would have thought winter in Chicago would be a difficult time for such a job? Finally, a new attempt was scheduled for Jan. 3, 2009. This time the omens were good. The skies were clear and the wind was calm. Temperatures were low but the crew on the tower could work. The only concern was bad weather expected late in the day. The permits allowed work to be done on both Saturday and Sunday but, if it wasn’t done by Saturday, Sunday did not look to be a good day to finish.

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