If asbestos is identified on a proposed site for demolition or refurbishment when a survey is carried out, Tower can offer a start to finish service. For our clients, this takes away the need to deal with multiple companies for one project, which can be both inconvenient and inefficient.

We have many years’ experience of removing asbestos across various sectors including health, government, local authorities, construction and the chemical Industry. Our focus on operative training, expert supervision and cutting-edge equipment guarantees safe, successful and timely completion of every project.

We offer:

• Asbestos surveys
• Detailed analysis of materials
• Risk Assessment Method Statement (RAMS)
• Submission of ASB5 notification to the HSE
• Safe removal and disposal of all types of asbestos (board or fibrous) complying strictly with HSG247 Asbestos, the licensed contractors’ guide, all relevant Environmental and H&S legislation, and Construction Design and Management (CDM) requirements
• Background and personal monitoring
• Clean air and re-occupation certificates
• Registration with the Environment Agency for hazardous waste
• Waste transfer notes

On completion of the asbestos removal, Tower can carry out the reinstatement with a non-asbestos equivalent.

We can supply very competitive quotations for the entire process, or we are more than happy to quote for each part individually.

Tower offers a full range of specialist site remediation and decontamination services for:

• Petrol stations
• Redundant farm tanks
• Petrochemical sites
• Brownfield sites

According to government statistics, the UK has over 400,000 hectares of contaminated land, much of it an unwanted legacy from the Industrial Revolution. Land for building is in great demand so clean up of brownfield sites has become a huge priority.

Conventional site clearance and groundworks through to site remediation are on offer at Tower Demolition, making use of the latest techniques in treating contaminated materials to avoid disposal to landfill. This, we achieve either in situ or off site. Processes include:

• Decommissioning and dismantling
• Degassing and cleaning of redundant chemical storage plants or fuel tanks (both above and below ground)
• Environmental cleaning of polluted buildings, including removal of rubbish, sharps and guano
• Removal of CFC gases and refrigerants from air-conditioning units and industrial refrigeration units
• Soil and ground remediation, including oil and knotweed contamination

As always, we guarantee a safe, efficient and cost-effective service with minimum disruption to surrounding businesses and residents. Our work eliminates the human and environmental health risks associated with contaminated sites, restoring them to their original state as far as possible.

Tower provides a specialist service in stripping out and de-rating buildings, where organisation and precision works are essential. We focus on work in London and the Home Counties, but can supply services further afield on request.

Ever-changing regulations determining business rates make full decommissioning of buildings a viable option for landlords when the rental market nosedives. It can be a costly exercise to leave an existing structure empty. When all the non-structural elements are removed, making a building unusable, it can be zero-rated. In this uncertain economic climate, there is considerable demand for our services.

In the first instance, we provide a site waste management plan and, on completion, a comprehensive report, detailing the waste removed, its destinations and how much is recycled. We aim to recycle over 95% of all waste removed from every strip-out project.

Our team has experienced project coordinators and manager plus over 20 site supervisors to offer a complete solution for your strip-out requirements, either as part of a major building refurbishment programme or de-rating of a building. We offer pre-works site surveys, isolations, diversions, and disconnection and removal of utilities (gas, electricity, water and telecommunications). Our interior stripping activities include the removal of:

• All floor coverings
• Computer floors
• Non-load bearing partitions
• Suspended Ceilings
• Render and Plaster removal
• Mechanical and Electrical (M&E) systems including lighting, cables, cable trays, heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (including degassing)
• Lift removal

We guarantee an efficient and cost-effective service, in returning the building to shell and core.

To achieve the desired outcome requires a high degree of planning and innovation to overcome the technical challenges, alongside a careful and co-ordinated approach, in collaboration with the local community, government agencies and other stakeholders.

We offer a single-source solution, taking our clients from the project’s inception, through the demolition process itself, regardless of the complexity and value of the project, to the reinstatement of the site if required. We undertake:

• production of construction environmental management plans
• assessment by specialist demolition, structural, temporary works and hazardous substances surveyors
• meticulous planning and selection of appropriate machinery

With every project, we strive for perfection; you are assured of industry-leading standards.

With an unsurpassed amount of accumulated knowledge, Tower provides a full range of bulk excavation, steel sheet piling and groundworks services.

To determine the best method of carrying out projects in a cost-effective manner, wholly compliant with government health and safety regulations, we start with a site visit and consultation. Removing surface obstacles enables comprehensive excavation, and once the required ground profile is achieved, we make sure that removed material is reused to meet our commitment as friends of the environment.

For steel piling, whether you require a small-scale temporary retaining wall or a massive permanent load-bearing basement structure, we have the know-how and the right plant to ensure totally reliable and cost-effective solutions.

With years of experience between them, our operatives provide a first-class groundworks service to every client—first time, on time, every time!

Tower offers a full range of specialist diamond drilling and diamond sawing services to accommodate the ever-increasing need in regenerating existing structures.

Diamond stitch drilling is a versatile and efficient method of making overlapping holes to form openings of any shape and size, in a wide range of hard materials, from heavily reinforced concrete, stone and blockwork to fragile terrazzo tiles. The procedure can be used across every plane—vertical, horizontal, angled and inverted. It’s an effective, quiet, dust and splinter-free alternative to demolishing and breaking.

Diamond floor sawing is a fast, safe and efficient way of slicing through hard horizontal surfaces such as heavily reinforced concrete or asphalt, including roads and pavements.  Our range of high output precision equipment gives clean edges quickly and quietly, with no fumes, so we can work in places such as shops, factories and hospitals where speed and an appreciation of the sensitive nature of the location is vital. With a vast range of floor saws, it’s possible for us to cut to almost any length, width and depth required by our clients.

Tower can use methods of controlled demolition which cut down the noise and dust impact on the site and its surroundings

Concrete bursting is a safe and efficient silent demolition method, used for removing or weakening reinforced and mass concrete, brickwork and stone. Vibration-free hydraulic bursters are inserted into pre-drilled holes, then expanded to cause controlled cracking of materials, reducing them to manageable pieces for removal. The process can be used in confined spaces without risk.

Concrete crunching is an effective method to carry out controlled demolition of concrete and other materials, reducing it to rubble in crunchers by means of hydraulic pressure. Work can be carried out quickly, quietly and with very little vibration or dust. We have a range of machines from some with a crushing power of 45 tons right down to hand-held crunchers which can be used in sensitive areas or when access is restricted.

This service is an ever-increasing requirement on demolition project especially. Our architectural salvage specialist will liaise with the site manager to ensure the programme of removal is coordinated, and keep relevant architects and architectural history consultants informed at all times.

Before starting removal works, any items of architectural importance will be thoroughly examined. We will then undertake a detailed contextual and condition survey, taking photographs and recording the exact location with global coordinates. Items which can be refurbished will be identified and removed with care and attention to detail.

A Method Statement will be produced explaining:

• proposals for the removal and reinstatement of each item
• arrangements for protection of personnel and the public including exclusion of unauthorised persons.

To transport items from the site, we will protect them with padding and strap them securely inside crates. We can store these safely for the duration of the construction programme, until re-installation is required.

We take on projects of any size, from a single domestic dwelling to multi-floor, multi-million-pound strip-outs. We also excel in soft strip and delicate demolition work, sometimes in highly sensitive situations such as functioning hospitals and occupied offices.

Tower can provide advice and assistance with the design of temporary working platforms for construction plant, investigating the site (pile probing) and testing the solution in situ.

Pile mats and crane bases must be designed specifically for the relevant ground conditions and the form of the loading exerted by the plant that will operate on it. Selecting the most suitable type of pile foundations relies on our expert knowledge of the physical properties of each load-bearing soil layer, and the best method of pile mat installation, combined with all the findings from the site investigation. Independent laboratories sample and test the material, providing appropriate certification.

Waste materials from demolition can be used for piling mats – crushed brick, concrete and cement-based products to create 6F2, from 75mm down to dust, in line with the Highways Specification 600 Series. This contributes to our commitment to re-use as much on-site arisings as possible, and also saves on transport of materials, with its cost and environmental implications.

The general process of pile mat construction, carried out by a team of highly competent personnel, is as follows, with the design engineer approving each stage before work continues:

• Reduce ground to required level for piling
• Proof roll the substrate
• Dig out soft spots and fill them with 6F5
• Proof roll again and carry out Plate Bearing Tests (PBTs) to the required shear value
• Spread out 6F2 to required thickness and lay geotextile if required
• Roll and compact each layer, continuing with PBTs

On completion, we fill out the WPC (Working Platform Certificate) and issue it to the follow-on contractor who will sign it off.

Once the pile mat is put in place, a rigorous maintenance and repair schedule must be instigated to ensure the plant will remain stable for the duration of the project.

At Tower we have a well-earned reputation for our design and installation of temporary works—for example, structural shoring and jacking to protect the integrity of a building or adjacent infrastructure. Our expert teams take into consideration the current condition of a building, the immediate surroundings, and nearby edifices, working hard to minimise impact and optimise safety. We carry professional indemnity insurance on all temporary works design, for your peace of mind.

These works may require the input of specialist structural engineers to meet the requirements of Party Wall Awards. To comply with these agreed guidelines about how the work should progress requires an exceptional level of innovative design experience and an eye for detail.

Temporary works we undertake at Tower include:

• raking props – lateral support to a single wall
• flying shores – horizontal support for parallel party walls when the building between them is removed
• diagonal struts – transfer shear to the supports
• dead shores – simple vertical support
• wailings – horizontal timber beams for side support
• king post wall – a borehole filled with concrete forming a base for an H pile
• sheet piling – steel sheets with interlocking edges to retain soil
• façade retention schemes including Kentledge

Structural steel, scaffolding and combinations of proprietary lightweight pre-formed sections are frequently used, for bespoke solutions.  We manufacture most of the steelwork in our own workshops, allowing us to respond quickly to urgent and unexpected demands from our sites.

Tower is expertly conversant with the problems associated with party wall and basement support works. We are frequently employed by architects, engineers and construction companies to carry out preliminary exploratory works, totally independent of our demolition contracts.