Skip to main content

Challenging bridge demolition

DEMOLITION and blasting experts Philipp Halter of Berlin, Germany, faced a challenging job: in just 48 hours it had to demolish the southern section of the Spandau Dam Bridge crossing the A 100. The efficient interaction of Atlas Copco hydraulic breakers and hydraulic CombiCutters, mounted on seven Volvo excavators, is said to have played a crucial role after following a carefully planned schedule. During Friday night a bed of sand was placed under the bridge to allow the girders and reinforcements torn dow
March 2, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
DEMOLITION and blasting experts 1215 Philipp Halter of Berlin, Germany, faced a challenging job: in just 48 hours it had to demolish the southern section of the Spandau Dam Bridge crossing the A 100.

The efficient interaction of 161 Atlas Copco hydraulic breakers and hydraulic CombiCutters, mounted on seven 2394 Volvo excavators, is said to have played a crucial role after following a carefully planned schedule. During Friday night a bed of sand was placed under the bridge to allow the girders and reinforcements torn down by the Atlas Copco CombiCutters to be safely collected
and transported.
 
Three 283 MB 1700 hydraulic breakers (each weighing 1,700kg and suitable for carriers in the 19-32tonne weight class) began with preparations on the bridge foundations. An SB 302 was used for the less demanding preparatory and finishing work, such as in narrow places. The light hydraulic breaker weighs 304kg and is suitable for carriers in the 4.5-9tonne weight class.

The main part of the work was handled by two Atlas Copco hydraulic CombiCutters (a CC 1700 U and a CC 2500 U) equipped with 'Universal' jaws, which crushed the concrete and cut the strong rebar of the bridge in one go. The cutters weigh 1,680kg and 2640kg, respectively. The roadblocks were removed at 5am on Monday, according to schedule, making way for one of the most significant roadwork projects in the capital on the banks of the River Spree.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Drilling rig meets the utility supply challenge
    May 9, 2012
    A tricky utility supply project has been carried out in difficult conditions in Germany, without disturbing a village access road. The drilling work for the project was operated by boring contractor Beermann and the site was located on a plateau some 5km from the nearest village.
  • Efficient new asphalt compactors from leading firms
    March 12, 2014
    New asphalt compactors from leading firms offer greater versatility and lower running costs - Mike Woof writes
  • Productive breaking
    February 15, 2012
    The powerful and productive DXB breakers from Doosan are said to suit a wide array of applications such as tunneling, secondary reduction, primary winning and demolition.
  • Major bridge widening project going to plan
    April 11, 2012
    When built it was determined that a vital US road/rail bridge would always be widened. Work on that huge project is going to plan as Patrick Smith reports One of the biggest bridge widening projects in the world is being carried out under an ambitious development programme. At US$1.2 billion, the seven-year scheme to widen the Huey P. Long Bridge in the US state of Louisiana is also the largest of 16 projects planned under the state's TIMED (Transportation Infrastructure Model for Economic Development)