G&G Steel Builds Miter Gates For Lock 9
Russellville, Ala.-based G&G Steel Inc., which also has operations in Cordova, Ala., on the Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River (Warrior River Steel) and in Iuka, Miss., on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway (G&G Steel Mississippi Works), recently sent four miter gates from its Cordova facility bound for Mississippi River Lock 9 near Lynxville, Wis. The shipment is part of an ongoing project by the St. Paul Engineer District to replace the miter gates at locks 2 through 10 on the Upper Mississippi River.
According to the St. Paul District, the original components at locks and dams 2 through 10 date back to the 1930s. Damage and distress can lead to serviceability and safety issues, and the long-term project will replace the gates and upgrade the anchorage systems at each lock. The new miter gates are “significantly heavier” than the originals in order to comply with modern design standards and best practices, according to the St. Paul District.
Installation of the new gates for Lock 9 will begin soon after they arrive on site.
G&G Steel is no newcomer to miter gate fabrication for Corps of Engineers locks and dams. On the Upper Mississippi alone, G&G has built the miter gates for locks 6 and 7, which were installed last summer.
“New miter gates for Locks and Dams 3 and 4 are in fabrication by G&G Steel,” said Michael Humphres, plant manager for Warrior River Steel. “The new Lock and Dam 3 miter gates are scheduled for installation in summer 2028, and the Lock and Dam 4 gates are scheduled for installation in summer 2029.”
G&G Steel has been in operation since 1975. Its Russellville home office sits on a 27-acre industrial park, while the Cordova, Ala., and Iuka, Miss., facilities are served by both river and rail.
The Corps of Engineers placed Lock and Dam 9, which is located about 12 miles upriver from Prairie du Chien, Wis., into service in July 1937. The lock is part of the Corps’ 9-foot channel on the Upper Mississippi River. The navigable channel on the Upper Mississippi extends from Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam in Minneapolis, Minn., down to Lock and Dam 10 near Guttenberg, Iowa.
Lock and Dam 9 is at River Mile 647.9. The site underwent a major rehabilitation between 1989 and 2006. The lock measures 110 feet by 600 feet.
Featured image caption: Parker Towing Company’s mv. Miss Morgan pushes miter gates from G&G Steel down the Black Warrior River. The miter gates are bound for Lock and Dam 9 on the Mississippi River. (Photo by John Earl)
