Compressor used for piling project

A 12 bar Chicago Pneumatic CPS 375 compressor is being used in Hanoi, Vietnam, to flush out water and soil from 50 m deep borings for the construction of concrete piles.

The unit is the first high-pressure 12-bar portable air compressor from Chicago Pneumatic (CP) to have been sold in Asia and for this particular project its owner, rental company Truong Loch (TLC), has supplied it to foundations contractor Delta Construction.

The CPS 375 is boring 200 holes in a three month piling contract for the Toan Cau Oil & Gas office building project in Hanoi. The 50 m deep holes, with diameters ranging from 800 mm to 1m, pass through soft mud and layers of impacted clay and sand.

Chicago Pneumatic said when the bored hole has reached its full depth and the steel lining has been installed, the compressor is used to blow the water and soil back up out of the hole, so that the reinforcing steel cage can be inserted and the concrete poured. It takes about one day to complete one pile.

The company added the CP compressors are considerably smaller than comparable models with similar ratings providing reduced transportation costs and making them the ideal choice particularly when on-site space is a premium.

The CPS 375 has a free air delivery of 10.4 m³/minute and is powered by a 104 kW Deutz 4-cylinder diesel engine.

According to Chicago Pneumatic the launch of the CP brand in Vietnam earlier this year was a significant move, because the portable compressor market is dominated by second-hand machines, mostly from Japan.