Diamond Concrete Bursting – Colchester
Diamond Concrete Bursting in Colchester
Project : Diamond Concrete Bursting Panels
Location : The Dutch Quarter, Colchester
Client : Cura Construction Ltd
Drill Masters Ltd were contracted by Cura Construction to perform concrete bursting to 6 No. panels that formed part of a stairwell that was being removed as the building was being converted into 51 contemporary apartments. The old office block was part of the BT buildings in the heart of Colchester which had been sold off and was in the process of being converted to Luxury apartments. The concrete wall panels (which used to support the emergency exit staircase) could not be cut out due to the fact they were on all 6 levels of the building. This meant the most economical method of removal was to diamond drill and burst the panels in situ and then use the rubble chute to remove the debris to the skip on the ground floor.
In total there were 6 No 3.1m x1.4m panels with a thickness of 240mm in reinforced concrete to be removed. The process was began by drilling a series of 120 dia holes throughout the panel. Drill Masters then used a Hydrostress hydraulic buster with a 3 cyclinder head which was placed inside each hole and expanded to crack the concrete. The concrete cracked inline with the rebar inside the panel forming small sections which were easy to manage and remove once the rebar was cut with bolt cutters. In total the project lasted 6 working days including all the disposal of the rubble and the diamond drilling of the holes.
In total Drill Masters undertook diamond drilling holes for waste pipes, hydraulic cutting openings for smoke vents and hydraulic bursting of the stairwell panels on this project to transform the old commercial property into luxury contemporary apartments.
Drill Masters are expect diamond Drilling and concrete cutting specialists and can assist with concrete removal projects throughout East Anglia. Contact us for more information.