Mammoet installs Science World HVAC under tight Vancouver lifting constraints

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Mammoet has completed a constrained crane operation at Science World in Vancouver, replacing rooftop HVAC equipment while working around limited crane positioning, an ageing seawall and sensitive structural elements at the waterfront site.

The project, carried out with Broadway Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Co. Ltd, involved removing older HVAC equipment and installing new, more energy efficient systems on the roof of the landmark building.

The operation was subsequently recognised by the Canadian Crane Rental Association, which awarded Mammoet Canada Western the 2026 Canadian Lift of the Year Award in the Under 20T category.

Mammoet used an LTM1250 5.1 mobile crane for the lifts. The crane had to operate from tightly controlled positions while still providing sufficient reach to place equipment at predetermined locations on the roof.

The waterfront setting added another consideration. Before crane operations began, a geotechnical survey was carried out to establish whether the ageing seawall near the lifting area could safely withstand the loads generated during the work.

Traffic management was also implemented while lifting operations were underway, reflecting the project’s location in a busy public area.

For heavy lift contractors, such conditions can turn what appears to be a relatively conventional HVAC replacement into a detailed engineering exercise. The challenge is not simply whether a crane can lift the cargo, but whether it can safely stand in the limited space available and still reach every required position.

Conditions on the Science World roof created further restrictions. Mammoet said the surface was delicate and existing tension cables limited how equipment could be landed and moved.

Rather than lifting the HVAC units as complete assemblies directly into their final locations, the equipment was handled in modules. A landing and transfer system positioned on the roof was then used to adjust the modules and move them into their required positions.

Broadway Refrigeration has described the wider work at Science World as a chiller retrofit project. The Vancouver area contractor provides HVAC, refrigeration and mechanical installation and maintenance services across British Columbia.

The technical approach earned Mammoet Canada Western the Canadian Lift of the Year Award in the Under 20T category during the Canadian Crane Rental Association’s annual conference in Halifax in June 2026.

The association said the Science World operation demonstrated problem solving under significant constraints during the removal of old HVAC equipment and installation of more energy efficient replacement systems.

Mammoet Canada Western also won the association’s Over 20T category for a separate heavy lift operation involving the dismantling and replacement of a 58 year old coke drum structure at Suncor Energy’s Fort McMurray facility.