The Linden House tower block was situated in a sensitive position between the main hospital and the dental hospital. There was a busy road to one side of the building and it was close to routes heavily used by staff and visitors, so health and safety considerations were top priority during the demolition. Control of dust, the minimisation of noise and the management of traffic during demolition work were other factors taken into account.

It had been originally planned to bring down the tower block floor-by-floor by using mini excavators with breakers and back propping the floors to ensure stability. However, a detailed survey of the building structure carried out by J Freeley’s structural engineer’s revealed the building may not have been capable of withstanding the imposed loading.

“Our site managers had to closely monitor the manual breaking operation and ensured that operatives undertaking this work were rotated regularly to ensure compliance with the H.A.V. Regulations. In excess of 40 operatives were employed on site during the hand demolition phase of the contract.”
- John Freeley, managing director, J Freeley Ltd