Development of a Helicopter-assisted Method for Dismantling Steel Pipe Towers

In Japan's mountainous areas, there have been cases of dismantling lattice angle steel towers employing a helicopter-assisted method, which requires no temporary facilities. However, for lattice towers constructed with steel pipes (hereinafter referred to as “steel pipe towers”), the joint structure differs from that of angle steel towers, and jigs used for dismantling angle steel towers cannot be applied. Furthermore, since pausing the dismantling work is difficult once the removed members have been lifted into the air, the helicopter-assisted dismantling method has been considered unsuitable for steel pipe towers. Consequently, the process has involved transporting temporary facilities to the site by helicopter, or monorail, and then using a selferecting crane to dismantle the towers.…