The site takes a low-noise, high-impact approach
Erlangen in Franconia is home to a very special building site: On the site of a former administrative building, two buildings with a surface area of around 3,300m2 are being demolished. The extraordinary feature? All vehicles and machines, from excavators and wheel loaders through to the crushing plant, are operated electrically. Volvo claims this is the first fully electric demolition site in the world.
No diesel, exhaust gases, hardly any noise. Instead, electric motors hum quietly, powered by a specially constructed power infrastructure. An all-electric impact crusher Mobirex MR 100 NEOe from Kleemann is used for material processing on site.
“In our eyes, the crushing plant differs significantly from others – especially with regard to its low starting currents,” says Michael Metzner, managing director of Metzner Recycling and worksite manager. “This feature was a decisive factor in choosing to deploy the plant”.
Infrastructure as the key
To implement the idea of an “electric building site” that arose during the ongoing project, the energy supply first had to be expanded. “We had to set up a new transformer station, underground cables and charging stations,” says Metzner. Although basic power was available on site, it was not sufficient to operate all machines simultaneously. The power source is green electricity from the Erlangen municipal grid. The aim is to achieve significant CO2 savings compared to conventional demolition sites using electric machines and optimised recycling of materials on site. In addition, noise and particulate emissions on site are significantly reduced.
Efficient processing, high-quality final product
The impact crusher Mobirex MR 100 NEOe on the work site processes a recycling mixture of bricks, concrete, asphalt and cast concrete with a feed size of 0mm to 300mm. The result is a pure grain mixture. “The material produced has a lower content of fines than with other impact crushers known to us. This significantly improves recyclability and makes an important contribution to the production of high-quality recycled building materials,” says Metzner. The produced fractions, 0mm-4mm and 4mm–16mm, can be used, among other things, as aggregates for new concrete. Around 96% of the demolition material should be reused directly. Important and helpful special equipment at the crushing plant includes a wind sifter and a magnetic separator.
Strong signal for the industry
Demand for all-electric crushing and screening plants is increasing, especially in urban areas. The advantages are obvious: fewer emissions, less noise and less lorry traffic, thanks to the reuse of recycled material directly on the work site. “We see this as the future of the building industry,” Metzner says. “Emissions-free demolition, in particular, will open up new avenues, especially for inner-city projects.”
For more information visit: www.wirtgen-group.com
