Skip to main content

Breaking at the face

Italian customer Marocca Group is using an Indeco HP18000 hydraulic breaker (the heaviest hydraulic breaker on the market at present) for primary demolition at a limestone quarry in Anagni, close to capital Rome. The 40ha quarry produces high grade limestone in 21 different sizes to meet an array of construction needs, and the bespoke fully automated crushing and screening plant is able to process over 500m³/hour of rock. By using the HP18000 in a primary winning application, Marocca Group has also been abl
July 16, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
RSSItalian customer Marocca Group is using an 237 Indeco HP18000 hydraulic breaker (the heaviest hydraulic breaker on the market at present) for primary demolition at a limestone quarry in Anagni, close to capital Rome.

The 40ha quarry produces high grade limestone in 21 different sizes to meet an array of construction needs, and the bespoke fully automated crushing and screening plant is able to process over 500m³/hour of rock.

By using the HP18000 in a primary winning application, Marocca Group has also been able to significantly reduce operating costs by minimising its use of explosives, which are costly and subject to strict regulations. Many quarry operators are keen to cut their reliance on blasting: this has been particularly apparent in Italy, where regulations have long been much tougher than in other European countries.
Comparative research carried out on rock produced from quarries using breakers for primary winning against blasted stone shows other benefits from using hydraulic hammers. Where breakers are used, the stone produced features less micro-cracking and is said to offer high performance in civil engineering applications as it is less likely to feature crack propagation.

The Marocca Group has been using Indeco breakers in its quarries for five years and in addition to the huge HP18000 it also has an HP2500, an HP7500 and an HP12000. Maintenance for its Indeco breakers is provided by Fratelli Alpassi, while for scheduled maintenance and periodic overhaul, the Bari plant also provides servicing.

The HP18000 is being used on a 120tonne 233 Hitachi excavator fitted with a Lenhoff quick coupler. The breaker is mounted on the quick coupler as Marocca also uses a ripper and a bucket on the excavator when required.

According to Marocca, the HP18000 is able to carry out the work of two mid-sized breakers, and it can break up the hardest blocks of materials, enabling it to clean each seam faster, a critical procedure for safety and for restoring the site.
RSS

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Sandvik’s jaw-dropping Superior tooth jaw plates
    May 31, 2017
    Scottish Highlands-based company GF Job is been one of the first companies to trial Sandvik’s Superior tooth jaw plates. Sandvik said that, among other benefits, it has doubled the lifetime of the company’s jaw plates. GF Job, based near Inverness, offers earthmoving, civil engineering, heavy haulage and recycling to contract crushing. It owns five aggregates quarries as well as a wide range of Sandvik mobile crushing and screening equipment, including four tracked jaw crushers. Predominantly, the quarries'
  • Multi-role machinery for utility sector
    July 20, 2012
    The application range and machine choices available for the utility equipment sector continues to grow and evolve - Mike Woof reports The development of the tracked loader from the skid steer loader in recent years has been a major development for the utility equipment sector. The tracked loader offers huge advantages in terms of working stability and low ground pressure operation. When these machines first began appearing on the market, customers were sceptical and there were many comments that there was n
  • Sheffield duty for a Miller PowerLatch
    June 3, 2019
    The Miller PowerLatch Tilt was recently the attachment of choice for Yorkshire-based engineering consultancy JN Bentley, part of global engineering consultancy Mott MacDonald.
  • Sandvik construction machines helping build Hong Kong tunnel link
    October 11, 2017
    Machines from Sandvik are playing important roles in the construction of a new tunnel connection to Hong Kong. The Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point (BCP for short) is a series of infrastructure projects that will see the construction of the latest land crossing between Shenzhen in China and Hong Kong. This project includes the construction of highways and tunnels. The crushing and drilling equipment from Sandvik Mining and Rock Technology being used for the work is being supported by Sandvik’