Stick breaks and casts doubts over future of machine with troubled past.
We awoke this morning to the news that the TUHD90 – the world’s largest high reach demolition excavator – has been involved in another high profile incident.
According to sources in the Netherlands, the machine’s stick broke whilst carrying a 6,700 kg attachment at a height of 52 metres, just over half the machine’s 90 metre reach capabilities. The broken stick then apparently swung back, causing further impact damage to the machine’s boom.
Thankfully, no-one was injured in this latest incident, although the machine operator Gerwin Wijs says he has never been so startled or scared. “I really thought it would come on top of the cab,” he says.
This is the latest incident involving a machine that was once hailed as the future of the high reach demolition industry. Upon delivery, it was the centre of a dispute between designer/manufacturer Rusch and its owner Euro Demolition. More recently, the machine was involved in an accident that killed high reach pioneer Ad Swanink.
Investigations are likely to continue for some time as the owners try to establish just what caused such a catastrophic failure. But it appears that the machine could be back in action again soon as an order for new sticks has already been placed with Beco Industries.
