Demolition firm AR Demolition has used a 102-year-old steam traction engine once owned by Sir William McAlpine, son of Sir Robert McAlpine, to remove decommissioned infrastructure from the bottom of a Leicestershire quarry.
AR Demolition used the 1918 J&H McLaren engine, called Avis, to remove sections of a conveyor belt from Croft Quarry.
Avis is currently owned by Robert Holt, from Hinckley in Leicestershire, whose son Richard is a fabricator at AR Demolition and operated the engine during its recent outing.
The firm was contracted to complete decommissioning demolition by site owners Aggregate Industries. Managing director Richard Dolman came up with the idea of using the steam engine after looking into winch hire and finding it “prohibitively expensive”.
Dolman explained: “Because of the nature of the site there was insufficient space to drag the pieces up the ramp from the bottom of the quarry using a long rope and demolition rig.
“I knew that Robert and Rich had Avis and it just occurred to me that she would be the perfect solution. It was a great opportunity for us to see what she could do and, as it turned out, she made it look easy.”
Around 100 metres of conveyor belt housing was removed in sections over several hours, with the traction engine anchored at the top of the ramp. The work took place before the coronavirus lockdown and before social distancing measures were required on sites.
The belt and housing was cut through with hot cutting torches to create sections – each weighing several tonnes – before being winched up the ramp and deconstructed using AR Demolition’s high-tech demolition rigs.
Richard Holt, who operated the engine, said: “Once she’s warmed up properly, she gets in this sweet spot where she’s a joy to work with.
“My dad and I, as well as Richard Dolman and AR Demolition’s co-owner Andrew Thompson, are passionate about old machinery like this. It’s beautifully constructed and if you maintain it properly there’s no reason why it can’t work as well as the day that it was made.
“Quarries are actually a great setting to use this type of technology, due to space restrictions, and it you’re working with competent people who are properly trained then it can all work really well.
“She’s quite slow on the road so it takes a while to get her home again, but it was definitely worth it for a job well done.”
Dolman added: “It’s a matter of picking the right machine for the job, not having a vested interest in choosing one or the other. Ultimately, what our clients want – and what makes business sense – is for work to be done as efficiently and, crucially, as safely as possible.
“So it’s been a delight to work with the Holt family and Avis on this job. Admittedly, it’s been fun too. But I definitely won’t rule out using her again, either at Croft Quarry or at any other site where the methods are appropriate.”
