US Army base falls to German contractor

A former US military base is the location for a major demolition project being undertaken by a new Hitachi Zaxis-5 excavator in Germany.

Part of Reese Barracks in Augsburg is being dismantled by one of the first ZX350LC-5s in Europe, which is being operated by KS Engineering in the city of Augsburg in south-west Bavaria.

The base was originally constructed in 1934-36 and named after Private James W Reese of the US Army, who was awarded the Medal of Honour after being killed in Sicily in August 1943.

The 45-hectare site is being redeveloped for housing, offices and a park. The project started at the end of 2010 and each building has been tendered on an individual basis by the local authority for demolition.

KS Engineering has been successful with four of the tenders and an old garage complex is the third structure being dismantled by the Laupheim-based company.

The process includes the assessment of each building for hazardous materials, the demolition activities and separating the materials for recycling purposes.

The company was formed by Tobias Kuhn and Manfred Schöllhorn in 2007 and currently employs 30 members of staff.