Hydraulic System Design & Consulting Work-8

King Kong Invades China

Gary L. Kranz, Owner of Western Dynamics, Inc, Chief Hydraulics Designer for American Piledriving Equipment, Inc. was proud to have been one of many in the development of the APE King Quad Vibrator used in China.

On September 17, 2001 APE signed a multi-million dollar contract to provide 4 Model 400 King Kong vibratory pile drivers to the Ministry of Transportation of China. The system will be mounted on a single caisson beam and will drive giant 12 meter or 40 foot in diameter caissons along the banks of the Yangtze River outside Shanghai. The project has been named the Great Pile Wall of China and it is the result of a 2 year technical collaboration between John White, President of APE and the Design Institute of the 4th Marine construction Group’s chief engineer Mr Wang Ru Kai.

For years, the city of Shanghai has been in the process of solidifying itself as the commercial and trade center of China. Shanghai sits at the mouth of the Yangtze River and the city was looking for a way to solve a problem known to all cities situated at river deltas across the world. Silt and clay deposits brought downstream by the Yangtze River were in need of constant dredging to allow for large cargo and leisure ships to be able to make it to the city of Shanghai. Every time they dredged however, the banks of the river would collapse and the process had to be completed repeatedly.

To solve this problem, Mr. Wang proposed to drive giant concrete piles along the banks of the river to create giant retaining walls. To help with the pile driving aspects of the proposal, they enlisted the assistance of John White to help them write the driving specifications. This method was one of several separate technical proposals submitted by different Chinese design institutes to solve the problem but was selected due to its efficiency and cost effectiveness. One idea was even proposed to dredge the whole mouth of the river that is miles wide.

The Chinese Government is now looking for companies to help with the massive dredging operation. The Chinese government has already earmarked 2 billion dollars for this project. John White will lead a delegation of Chinese contractors coming to the USA to meet with contractors that specialize in dredging.



	King Kong Invades China Gary L. Kranz, Owner of Western Dynamics, Inc, Chief Hydraulics Designer for American Piledriving Equipment, Inc. was proud to have been one of many in the development of the APE King Quad Vibrator used in China. On September 17, 2001 APE signed a multi-million dollar contract to provide 4 Model 400 King Kong vibratory pile drivers to the Ministry of Transportation of China. The system will be mounted on a single caisson beam and will drive giant 12 meter or 40 foot in diameter caissons along the banks of the Yangtze River outside Shanghai. The project has been named the Great Pile Wall of China and it is the result of a 2 year technical collaboration between John White, President of APE and the Design Institute of the 4th Marine construction Group’s chief engineer Mr Wang Ru Kai. For years, the city of Shanghai has been in the process of solidifying itself as the commercial and trade center of China. Shanghai sits at the mouth of the Yangtze River and the city was looking for a way to solve a problem known to all cities situated at river deltas across the world. Silt and clay deposits brought downstream by the Yangtze River were in need of constant dredging to allow for large cargo and leisure ships to be able to make it to the city of Shanghai. Every time they dredged however, the banks of the river would collapse and the process had to be completed repeatedly. To solve this problem, Mr. Wang proposed to drive giant concrete piles along the banks of the river to create giant retaining walls. To help with the pile driving aspects of the proposal, they enlisted the assistance of John White to help them write the driving specifications. This method was one of several separate technical proposals submitted by different Chinese design institutes to solve the problem but was selected due to its efficiency and cost effectiveness. One idea was even proposed to dredge the whole mouth of the river that is miles wide. The Chinese Government is now looking for companies to help with the massive dredging operation. The Chinese government has already earmarked 2 billion dollars for this project. John White will lead a delegation of Chinese contractors coming to the USA to meet with contractors that specialize in dredging.