Atlas Copco: low-emission demolition work carried out on hospital grounds

At present the grounds of the city hospital in Stuttgart, Germany, are turned into a major construction site. Right next to the Katharinenhospital the new gynaecological and paediatric clinic is under construction. This new building is currently the country's biggest hospital construction site. Before work could be started, first of all the former administration and storage building of the hospital had to be torn down. This demolition job had to comply with special restrictions curtailing the amount of dust, noise and vibrations produced during demolition work because normal hospital work has to be continued unhindered.

FWA Fischer Weilheim Abbruch (FWA), a company belonging to the Fischer Group from Weilheim/Teck, was entrusted with this large-scale demolition job by the provincial capital Stuttgart. Within the short construction period some 50,000 cubic meters of walled-in space above as well as below ground had to be demolished and properly disposed.

Work started with extensive gutting and sanitation activities. Apart from the usual sanitation of pollutant wastes such as synthetic mineral fibres and substances containing tar, a lot of sanitation work was needed to clear asbestos. Experts continuously monitored the work and in the end gave their OK for the demolition work. In order to reduce the amount of dust produced during demolition FWA used their own water spray systems directly attached to the excavators to bind the dust near the sport where it is produced.

FWA put their trust in Caterpillar heavy-duty demolition excavators and Atlas Copco hydraulic breakers and silent demolition tools. Owing to the long-standing co-operation with the attachment manufacturer both parties benefit from continual innovations. The last new entry of FWA's equipment pool is the Atlas Copco CC 6000 U hydraulic CombiCutter launched on the occasion of the Bauma 2010. The company has been actively involved in the development of the cutter and has purchased the first series-produced cutter at the Bauma 2010 in Munich. Only one day after the end of the exhibition the cutter was used for the demolishing work needed for the new hospital building in Stuttgart. The use of the new CombiCutter allows the heavily reinforced concrete to be demolished much fasterApart from the new CC 6000 U also a new CC 3300 B with box-type jaw is used on the construction site. Other Atlas Copco attachments are used for the demolition job: two CC 3300 hydraulic CombiCutters, one with universal arm and one with scrap cutting arm, and three heavy-duty hydraulic breakers with a 3 to 7 ton service weight.

Atlas Copco is an industrial group with world-leading positions in compressors, construction and mining equipment, power tools and assembly systems. Founded 1873, the company is based in Stockholm, Sweden, and has a global reach spanning more than 170 countries. In 2009, Atlas Copco had about 30 000 employees and revenues of BSEK 64 (BEUR 6.0).

Atlas Copco Construction Tools is a division within Atlas Copco?s Construction and Mining Technique business area. It develops, manufactures and markets hydraulic, pneumatic, and petrol-driven equipment for demolition, recycling, compaction, rock drilling and concrete applications. Products are marketed and sold under several brands through a worldwide sales and service organisation. The division is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, and has production units in Europe, Africa and Asia.