Installation of the Savannah Olympic Torch Sculpture

by: Ivan Bailey

After completion of fabrication, the torch sculpture is packaged and brought to the river site location in Savannah. Following are some of the highlights documented during installation.

As we arrived the concrete bases were being poured. A specially formulated mix was created to be both strong and quick curing.

The pour was done in haste and leveling-height pins were not put through the cardboard walls, resulting in differences in height in the 5 bases. The one in front was greatly off and the masons had to chip nearly an inch off by hand.

A cathodic protection system was chosen by the city in order to minimize electrolytic corrosion. A constant small electrical charge will keep the steel reinforcements from corroding.

Cathodic protection elements of titanium mesh ribbons are spot welded together after being held in place to the cage with plastic clips.

Columns are lowered into place over the cages and center posts. The cages were such a tight fit that it was impossible to turn them once in place more than a few inches.

The enormous concrete pumper had to do the job when the smaller 2 inch rig was sent on another job.

For days we had tried to figure out how to get the concrete slurry into the 3 inch holes. One of the concrete company workers came up with the idea of using the ubiquitous traffic cone as a funnel. It saved the day!

The next morning the crane came back to set the plinth on the columns. Because of the star jig which was in position during the column pour, the pancake eased down smoothly onto the columns.
Due to slight irregularities, the pancake had to be slightly higher on the side facing river street. As a result the weight of the top is carried only on steel collars welded to the center poles.

The gas line is connected so a test could be run before the one empty flute panel on the pancake was soldered into place.

After everything was sealed and bolted into place, the sculpture was completed. Here is another view of the finished Savannah Olympic Torch Sculpture.