Precision Cranes worked on the 2011 Cushman Street Bridge Project that added a new southbound bridge in effort to improve traffic flow in Fairbanks.
Experience: the Best Teacher
hough the two current owners of Precision Cranes, Inc. have run the business for almost twenty years, they credit their longevity to the fact that they and their employees have been working in the industry even longer.
“When we first started this business, we realized that we had more than 100 years of operating experience sitting at the table because we were fortunate enough to have a number of elite operators at the time through Local 302,” explains Fred Kuykendall Jr., referring to the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 302. Kuykendall Jr. owns Precision Cranes with his father, Fred Kuykendall Sr.
“Over the years, our long-time operators shared their experience with the crew we have now, which has led to us creating a successful business with an outstanding safety record,” he says. “We are very fortunate to have a crew with such a great work ethic and excellent skills; it really means a lot to us.”
Jobs Big and Small
A Precision Cranes, Inc. crew sets a bridge girder in Turnagain Arm recently. Based out of Fairbanks, Precision Cranes provides numerous services, including setting bridge girders.
Precision Cranes worked on the Alaska Satellite Facility, in 2020. The facility is part of the Geophysical Institute of the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Precision Cranes’ elite operators have performed a number of heavy-lift projects at Alaska mines, including this tandem lift at Fort Knox Gold Mine.
According to Frank Torres, general superintendent at Heritage General Contracting, the company’s expertise is key to completing difficult projects.
“Precision Cranes provides very professional, very high-quality work, whether they are hired to do a short pick to set up a tank or deep dynamic compaction, which not many crane companies can do,” he says. “We’ve worked on several projects at Fort Wainwright, which included moving eight relocatable arms rooms, or RARs, that required very delicate maneuvering in very active areas. They also worked with us on a combat readiness training center that required deep dynamic compaction using a 150-ton crane to lift a 30,000-pound tamper that they dropped 50 feet to a prescribed spot.”
Precision Cranes is currently working with Heritage to erect the structural steel for a new aquatic center and community activities center at Fort Wainwright, after completing a deep compaction project on the site last fall.
Training and Communication Are Key
“Before new operators get in the seat, they’ve worked for years on the ground with more experienced operators,” Kuykendall Jr. says. “As a family-owned, Alaska-owned business, we are also a very tight-knit group and we have strong communication between our office and our operators on a daily level.”
The company makes communication with clients a priority as well, and customers can always reach either Fred Jr. or Fred Sr. by phone.
“At the end of the day, we want our customers to be happy with what’s happening in the office and the field,” says Kuykendall Sr.
According to Randy Hahn, owner of T&D Services, Precision Cranes’ accessibility is one reason he likes working with the company. T&D specializes in iron work, pipe fitting, and welding and fabrication, among other services.
“We’ve used Precision for iron working, hanging large-bore pipes through catwalks at Fort Knox, and heavy lifting at the Pogo Mine,” Hahn says. “I started working with them years ago, even before I had my own company, and they’ve always been easy to work with, from getting me a job quote quickly so that I can get a bid in to providing good, quality operators on the job.”
“They also make it easy to schedule the work; all we have to do is call Fred, and there’s never an issue; he’s always able to make it happen,” he says.
No Match for Alaska Experience
“Growing up in Alaska helps you learn to deal with cold weather and teaches you how to treat equipment,” says Kuykendall Jr. “When ConocoPhillips called us to help them retrieve a mod that they’d lost on the Dalton Highway, it was 40 below, but we were able to quickly get our equipment running, set up on the Dalton Highway, and use rolling blocks to get the mod in an upright position and load it out. It was a challenge—and it’s definitely an experience we won’t forget.”
As a member of the Associated General Contractors of Alaska for the past twelve years, Precision Cranes also appreciates their team approach. “They are our go-to as far as questions on upcoming work, access to jobs and safety requirement information,” says Kuykendall Sr. “They are always there when we have questions.”