Unusual rig a barge for Help for Heroes

8th December 2010

On Wednesday December 8, JCB unveiled its London Christmas fundraising campaign in conjunction in support of Help for Heroes, with a reception in the London Television Studios overlooking the River Thames.

The view was important, because the focus of everyone’s attention was a barge carrying two 14m Christmas trees, two JCB backhoe loaders and a large banner displaying details of how donations could be made.

All the preparatory work on the barge was carried out down river at Tilbury Docks, and the challenge presented to Unusual Rigging was how to rig the Christmas trees – which weighed 1.5 tons each – so they could be lowered to enable the barge to pass under the five bridges between Tilbury and the South Bank.

Unusual’s Project Manager Jason White, senior project manager Simon Tiernan and managing director Alan Jacobi put their heads together with their design department to develop a custom hinged device which allowed the trees to fold flat onto the deck and be raised once the barge had reached the South Bank. Guide wires keep the trees upright and provide the additional support required for the 25m x 3m banner strung between them.
Between the trees, two 8.5 ton JCB Backhoe Loaders were secured to the deck by Unusual to ensure they don’t move an inch until the end of the campaign on December 21. Rigging was also provided for the advertising banners around the perimeter of the barge.

Jason White said: “The atrocious weather conditions not only resulted in frozen hands and feet, but also meant a few delays along the way. But we had a terrific crew, who even turned their hand to decorating the trees to help White Light when time started to get tight! We are also supplying a 24hr stand-by crew in case of emergencies, such as excessive wind . . . or snow!”