On top of the world: a view from Canada’s tallest crane at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium

If the idea of climbing up a 600-rung ladder makes your knees buckle, controlling the crane at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium may not be the job for you.

That’s how François Noël starts his morning every day.

The structure, nicknamed Giraffe for its impressive height, sits at over 200 metres high — the tallest in the country.

READ MORE: Desjardins to move into Montreal Olympic Stadium tower

“In one day, I could do 100, 200 trips with all the material,” he explained.

“It doesn’t matter what construction site you’re on, how old you are, the day you say you know everything, that’s when you’re in trouble.”

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Noël has had his licence for over 20 years and says that until now, the tallest crane he’s ever controlled was about 120 metres.

“He’s always calm, he never yells. Even I’ve been nervous,” said Carlo Morotti, chief signalman of the construction site.

“We call him the ‘Smooth Operator.'”

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The crane weighs 660 tons and can lift over 25 tons.

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It was installed to enable the Olympic Park to begin renovations to accommodate new tenants in the stadium’s tower.

READ MORE: Montreal’s Olympic Stadium still standing 40 years after Summer Games

In 2018, 0ver 1,000 Desjardins employees will be moving in.

“For Desjardins, it’s really interesting. It’s an iconic and special site. It’s more than 1,000 people that will bring new life to the park. It’s fantastic for us,” said Maurice Landry, Olympic Park construction and maintenance vice-president.

“So, the next two years will be used to upgrade and prepare everything for their arrival.”

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Installing the crane took a lot of work and more than 100 workers.

READ MORE: Montreal’s Olympic Stadium to get $166M renovation

To position the crane in the safest way, 6,000 cons of compacted soil was used to level the ground and protect the concrete slab and a hole was cut in the stadium’s roof to allow the crane to come through.

“My wife said, ‘it would be a great project to finish your career,’ but I could go higher, no trouble,” mused Noël.

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The crane — and Noël — will be at the Olympic Stadium for another 18 months.

rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
Follow @rachel_lau