Expertise · Plasotech
Piotr Kasperek is a designer at Plasotech in Poland. Replacing the 22-metre main columns of a clinker storage hall is a manageable job once the hall is empty and shut down. This one was done with the plant fully operational, which is why almost all of the engineering went into the sequence rather than into the columns.
In Piotr Kasperek's own words.
"Engineering correctness must always be grounded in reality.
Solutions must be tailored to the requirements of their actual application."
The project involved the replacement of the existing 22-meter-long main steel columns, which formed a critical part of the primary load-bearing system of a clinker storage hall. One of the key engineering challenges was that the entire operation had to be carried out while the industrial plant remained fully operational, requiring precise planning, structural control, and careful assessment of each stage of the replacement process.
A dedicated temporary support system was designed to safely redistribute the loads during the replacement works. The engineering solution required the controlled lifting of a section of the existing steel roof structure, including the application of forces of approximately 2 × 90 tonnes, to temporarily relieve the main columns and enable their safe removal and replacement.
The entire operation was developed as a carefully planned sequence of erection and replacement stages. Detailed structural analyses performed in MIDAS Gen were used to simulate and verify each stage, including changes in load paths, temporary support conditions, structural deformations, internal forces, and the effects of the roof-lifting operation.
The analyses provided precise control over the structural behavior throughout the entire process and made it possible to translate a complex engineering concept into a safe and practical solution under real operating conditions.
Q. Partway through, the model had to be split into separate parts and later stitched back together. How did that hold up?
It held up well. When major modifications had to be introduced, the project had to be divided into separate parts and then, at a later stage, "stitched" back together, and the workflow in MIDAS Gen remained stable and reliable.
This level of reliability is particularly important in complex engineering projects, where extensive changes to the analytical model are sometimes unavoidable. This project demonstrates how advanced structural analysis, combined with engineering judgment and an understanding of actual site constraints, can enable complex modifications to existing structures without interrupting industrial operations.
Changing a structure while it stays in use can be harder than building a new one. Most engineers work on structures that have to keep operating in the real world, and many of them will recognise Piotr Kasperek's Right, that engineering correctness must always be grounded in reality.