Construction Today, Vol 20 Iss- 3 Final Book | Page 11

__________________________________________________________________________________________ Main interview
life expectancy . No matter what happens in the world , you are in one of the greatest businesses you could ever be in .’ And that really stuck with me , because although I personally enjoyed demolition , it was reassuring to know that my chosen career path made sense to someone with experience in the field .”
Returning specifically to Total Wrecking ’ s operations , Frank explains : “ We do a lot of implosions , which is actually one of my favorite aspects of the job , but we also do a lot of work with excavators or equipment . We just finished a job , for example , that required us to take out a boiler from the unit ’ s skeleton , which was about 120 feet high , all while protecting a turbine that couldn ’ t sustain any vibration .
“ Then , on the environmental side of the business , we do asbestos abatement , which we can manage alongside demolition if required . This means we can tear down a building containing asbestos while
If I can help younger generations like folks did for me , then that will be my job well done keeping it contained . We also do ash pile removals , deal with hazardous waste and polychlorinated biphenyls ( PCBs ), and clean up coal or metal ponds , returning the land to green space .
“ We break the rules of engineering all the time – it ’ s our job ,” he adds . “ We often have to find alternative ways to bring structures down in a safe way , and while it can be very tricky , it ’ s another one of my favorite practical elements of the business .
Amazing projects
“ There ’ s one project in Florida that was especially challenging due to all the moving parts ,” Frank reflects . “ It was a 1600- acre , 1250-megawatt power park , and it incorporated all our capabilities : PCB removal , asbestos abatement , both ash and metal pond removals , and we had three separate implosions to bring down two , 440-feet-tall cooling towers , a 620-foot stack , twin boilers , a pair of SCR Units and brought the site back to a shovel ready green space . On top of this ,
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