A beast takes shape

A new demolition giant is taking shape in the Rusch factory near Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The 34 m (111.5 ft) reach machine will carry a 25 tonne Genesis demolition shear that Norwegian customer AF Decom will use to cut up redundant oil installations at its yard in Vats.

Rusch managing director told D&Ri that he expects the machine to be completed by the beginning of June, when it will then be transported to its new home. Based on a heavily modified Cat 5130 mining shovel, the new machine is expected to weigh around 320 tonnes when fully assembled. To give an idea of its scale, the top of the crawler tracks stands 2 m (6.5 ft) off the ground