On the 7th, the left panel of the Anlong-bank main tower of the Huajiang Canyon Bridge saw its heavy "first lift" — the first main cable saddle grating landed steadily at the designated position atop the tower, with six-point positioning accuracy controlled to the millimeter level, marking that the main bridge of the Huajiang Canyon Bridge has officially entered the superstructure construction stage. The main cable saddle grating is the base connecting the cable saddle to the pier column; completion of this lift has laid a solid foundation for the next step of main cable saddle construction.

Wu Chaoming, chief engineer of the Third Branch of Guizhou Bridge Group and project manager of the Liuan No. 8 bid section, introduced: "The single-piece lifting weight of this main cable saddle grating lift was 41 tons, with a lifting height of 204 meters. During the lifting process, there were threefold challenges: high height, large weight, and large longitudinal and transverse dimensions."

To ensure the lifting work was completed safely and smoothly, the project department conducted in-depth communication and repeated verification with the design unit and the bridge construction research institute as the technical service unit, compared and optimized lifting schemes, and ultimately selected the walking-type transverse sliding scheme, which features stable movement, cost savings, and relative environmental friendliness. Before lifting, the project department strictly checked the welding quality of the gantry, bolt torque, and the safety of component lifting, and also carried out static load and dynamic load tests.

To solve the lifting difficulty caused by the large longitudinal and transverse dimensions of the cable saddle grating, the project department made precise selections of transport routes and transport equipment. During lifting, two winches were used for synchronous hoisting, and dedicated personnel were assigned to track and observe throughout the entire process, effectively ensuring that the cable saddle grating remained stable at all times during lifting.

It is reported that the cable saddle construction of the Huajiang Canyon Bridge will, for the first time, adopt the new process of a lightweight forged-welded structure cable saddle. First, to adapt to the ultra-high-strength main cable steel wire, forging technology is used at the saddle groove position to increase the wear resistance of the structure, enhance the friction between the cable saddle groove and the main cable, and improve the anti-slip capacity of the high-strength steel wire main cable. Second, the main cable saddle is divided into three blocks, effectively reducing the difficulty of transportation and lifting, which will provide a useful reference for the construction of long-span suspension bridges in mountainous areas.