Demolition Giants

The technology of demolition has changed beyond all recognition over the past few decades. The dust-raising ball and chain have largely gone, replaced by telescopic high-reach extensions to tracked machinery. In Demolition Giants you can see some of the world’s tallest demolition machines at work in Holland and the UK.

The reach of one of these massive machines is 90 metres. No less impressive are the tools at the end of the booms, weighing up to 28 tonnes and capable of slicing through reinforced concrete and metal.

You will be able to gain an unrivalled insight into a demolition contractor’s choice of equipment from the programme’s interview with David Coleman. Boom manufacturer David Kocurek talks about the practical limits of the booms which you can see being made at the Kocurek workshops.

Featured machines include a Hitachi ZX870 with an STC-made 50m four-piece boom and a Verachtert VT40 2.6-tonne scrap shear. We also see a Hitachi EX1200 with a Kocurek 50m telescopic boom and concrete crusher.

Another highlight is a Cat 385C modified by Rusch Special Products to carry a 62m telescopic boom and scrap shear. We also filmed two more Hitachi EX1200s, both of which are fitted with a Genesis GXP 2500 scrap shear.

There is also some unique footage of a Cat 5110B with a 27m three-piece STC boom, which carries a Mantovanibenne 12-tonne concrete crusher and later a 12-tonne scrap shear. We also filmed a Liebherr R984C with a 3.5-tonne attachment at the end of a Kocurek-made 65m telescopic boom.

Demolition Giants was researched and scripted by Steven Vale. The DVD was filmed by Roger Wiltshire and directed by Jonathan Theobald. Narrated by David Holt, the 85-minute programme was produced by Old Pond Publishing in 2009.