Martens Democom acquires Heavy Decom International
After weeks of speculation and rumour, DemolitionNews can exclusively reveal that Belgian demolition giant Martens Democom has acquired Heavy Decom International (HDI) for an undisclosed sum.
HDI was the company behind one of the world’s biggest and best-known demolition rigs, The Beast, and the giant 200 tonne pus machine is an integral part of the deal. It is understood that The Beast will be returning to the Kocurek yard where it was built for repainting before heading for its first contract, thought to be in Antwerp.
“We have previously supplied Martens Democom with a pair of modified Hitachi ZX870 machines including our first ever 50 metre reach machine and a smaller 44 metre unit. We were in discussions with them about the possibility of a Komatsu 1250 conversion,” explains Kocurek general manager Brian Carroll. “But they chose instead to acquire HDI and with it The Beast”
Carroll reports that while The Beast had been profitable, recent utilisation levels had been lower than anticipated. “The machine did a very large marine salvage job in Egypt last year but, apart from a short-term hire here in the UK, the machine had been pretty much idle since last summer,” he says. “Nobody expects a machine of this size to be working 24/7 but, by the same token, it has to earn its keep.”
DemolitionNews understands that aside from the onshore contract in Antwerp, Martens Democom has a long pipeline of work that will keep the machine occupied for the next few years. “If all goes according to plan, the only time The Beast will not be working in the next two years will be while it’s being transported to a new site.”
