Large Machinery Shipped on Detroit River

[bigtreble]

What is this thing? Photo taken at 11:20am today.
Attachment 1677

[jcole]

Looks like an enormous lint roller riding an aligator

[Rocko]

That looks like the tug Mary E. Hannah, but I can't say for sure what's on the barge. Maybe posting over on Boatnerd will result in some answers?

[Detroitnerd]

A giant anvil?

[lilpup]

My first impression is that it's a large turbine e.g. for a windmill or other large application.

[Sstashmoo]

My guess: Looks like a turbine of some sort, maybe a Hydrodam. Could be some sort of chiller unit for large structure HVAC.

[ejames01]

Could it be for the big Road Runner movie being filmed?

A giant anvil?

[Detroitnerd]

Could it be for the big Road Runner movie being filmed?

Haha. Sent via "ACME Shipping" no doubt.

[Sstashmoo]

Does it have a sign on it saying what it is? Then it's none of our business

[FlyByDon]

It's a large refinery vacuum unit, bound for a Indiana Harbor.
It was manufactured in Spain.

[Maxine1958]

Whoa, way cool photo!

And thanks for the update.

[bigtreble]

Thanks FlyByDon!

[Johnlodge]

How is it going to get to an Indiana harbor? Are they going to pull it on a barge through the lakes?

[Gsgeorge]

wow! That's awesome. I imagine the barge will take it the whole way. They can stay close to shore & if bad weather is anticipated they will seek protection in one of the many natural & manmade harbors along the Michigan shoreline.

[bdglsmn]

What was your altimeter reading when you took that photo Don?

[Johnlodge]

wow! That's awesome. I imagine the barge will take it the whole way. They can stay close to shore & if bad weather is anticipated they will seek protection in one of the many natural & manmade harbors along the Michigan shoreline.

Might they load it onto a larger vessel once it reaches open water?

[lilpup]

that's not usually necessary and it would be much more expensive

[Jimaz]

Impressive machine. I wonder if it might be somehow related to our high gasoline prices lately.

From today's Detroit News: Michigan's gas prices among top in U.S.

Many refineries near Chicago, from where Michigan typically gets its fuel supplies, have had to shutdown this spring for maintenance, limiting supply and pushing up prices.

"The Midwest market is an area that has seen tight gas supplies," said Jim Ritterbusch, of Ritterbusch and Associates, an oil trading advisory firm in Galena, Ill. For instance, the spring shutdown of BP's refinery in Whiting, Ind., has had a big impact on supplies. That refinery is expected to restart production this weekend, he added.

[Awfavre]

Dang, bigtreble, where’d you take that shot? It looks just like the view from my office in the Cadillac Tower. For a minute there, I wondered how you’d gotten one of my pix.


I forgot to mention the barge is the CBC 4507.

[mjs]

It's going to modernization of BP's Whiting facility to support new capabilities and improved environmental performance.
They've been working on it since May 2008. The website designer says there's an even larger one coming next month.

http://www.bp.com/sectiongenericarti...tentId=7051633
http://www.boatnerd.com/news/newsthu...thumbs_833.htm
http://www.boatnerd.com/news/newsthu...thumbs_830.htm

[detmich]

Oil refinery? probably BP Whiting in East Chicago.

Steel Refinery could be any number of them.

[mjs]

I looked it up because I thought it might be for one of the steel mills and I was wondering who would be accepting delivery when demand is so low that half the US steel plants are shut down.

[BillyBBrew]

It will go by tug and barge the whole way. The Tug Mary E. Hannah went out into the St. Lawrence Seaway to meet the tug that delivered it from the Atlantic Ocean and take over the tow on the Lakes.