Videos

image desription

Old becomes new for Harris Scarfe building

With more than 60 people working around the clock over two months, McMahon Services demolishes the old Harris Scarfe site

McMahon Services undertook the challenging demolition of the former Harris Scarfe site in Adelaide, South Australia earlier this year.

With more than 60 people working around the clock it took almost two months to complete the mechanical demolition of the site, which included buildings up to seven storeys high.

Project Manager David Smulders said the number and variety of buildings onsite presented some unique challenges.

“With buildings in varying stages of demolition onsite, safety was the priority,” David said.

“At any one time we had people working on propping detail and bracing, asbestos removal and mechanical demolition, meaning we had people working immediately next to buildings that were being demolished”.

“Safety procedures and evacuation plans were revised daily to account for the constantly changing access points and staff were involved in regular briefings to ensure everyone had the latest information”.

The demolition used the latest addition to McMahon Services’ fleet of plant and equipment, the Komatsu PC 1250 Ultra High Reach Demolition Excavator. At full configuration, the machine has a reach of 45m and the capacity to operate a 2.5 tonne demolition shear at this height. Structures up to 15 storeys high can be deconstructed from ground level and the unit is readily transportable for use anywhere around Australia.

The process required McMahon Services to manage McMillan Contractors and provide earthworks for the construction of 504 retention and building piles and excavate 7,000 m2 of soil to five metres below street level.

We also worked closely with the project partners, Hansen Yunken, to implement a significant traffic management system to enable trucks to enter and exit via Grenfell Street, while work was underway onsite.

Further work included underpinning the adjacent transformer substation, construction of the rubble platform beneath the new basement slab and detailed excavation for pile caps, footings, ground and edge beams, and pits.

The project also received a significant boost to its green credentials, with original materials from the demolished site being reused by McMahon Services to lay the foundations of the new building.

Concrete and heavy materials were removed from the site and taken to ResourceCo’s Wingfield premises where they were crushed and recycled into base material and aggregate for new concrete.

The recycling and re-use process has dramatically reduced the $385 million Harris Scarfe project’s carbon footprint and prevented many tonnes of material from going to landfill.

McMahon Harris Scarf Demolition