Piled for Life

The recently launched Still Worker is the safest and most environment-friendly system for installing steel sheet piles today.The pioneer of new piling equipment and technology in India, Suretech Infrastructure is by far the largest supplier of ICE vibratory hammers from Dieseko Group (ICE BV, Netherlands). It has till date supplied over 150 machines to Indian customers and is in the process of introducing ICE Resonance-free vibratory hammers that are ideal for city centres, congested areas and metro projects since they do not cause bad vibrations and damage to structures around the site. Also, the company recently launched the Watson & Hillhouse Ltd, UK, Kowan Still Worker Model No. PZ-1200 – a hydraulically powered, static-load, steel pile-pressing machine developed in Japan in the early 1970s to counter severe construction and environment problems.User-friendly featuresThe Still Worker helps in installing steel sheet piles in high-density areas where the use of conventional equipment like hydraulic vibrators and hydraulic drop hammers generate unacceptable levels of vibration and noise. The machine can press steel sheet piles of around 500 mm to an existing structure, enabling a smooth almost entirely vibration-free operation.Operated at ground level by a wireless radio control device, this equipment is the safest and most environment-friendly system for installing steel sheet piles today. It operates with no piling gates; uses wireless radio control to provide a broad range of vision for the operator, besides a safe working environment; is light and compact, re­quiring only a small crane for pile pitching; is ideal for height restricted sites, and is a good extraction machine. Each Still Worker has an exclusive mast tilting device, the benefits of which are that the mast/chuck can incline forwards and backwards by 5o, the pile is installed more accurately and efficiently, and makes self travelling and working on gradients easier and quicker.Wide offeringsOver the past 10 years, Kowan has developed machines for installing interlocking steel tubular piles for the installation of contiguous piled retaining or load bearing walls. The company offers machines for the installation of tube piles from 600 to 1,200 mm diameters with pressing forces ranging from 110 to 150 tonne. It also offers a wide range of sheet pile machines that can press 80 to 150 tonne of steel, U-sheet pile machines that can install 400 to 750 mm wide piles and Z-sheet pile machines that can install 575 to 708 mm wide piles. Kowan has also developed an in situ ‘auger crush’ system – available on some models – which enables sheet piles to be pressed into very hard soil strata. The auger, fitted to the Still Worker, is positioned inside the pan of the sheet pile and crushes the soil ahead of the pile. An alternative is to use high pressure water jetting, which ensures pile installation into stiff cohesive and dense granular soil. These bespoke jetters, developed specifically for pile pressing, are also available from Watson and Hillhouse/Suretech in two jetting options: the steel lance system or the Kowan Water Jet Reel, which is fitted to the machine and synchronised with the press.Driving successSuretech also distributes the IHC Hydrohammer and IHC Fundex and has introduced Fundex rigs for driven cast-in-situ piling rigs. These are used for driving closed bottom tubes of up to 610 m diameters and 30 m depth. Reinforcement and concrete can also be poured through this machine, after which, the casing is extracted through the bottom or sacrificial shoe inside. These rigs are extremely useful for driving a large number of driven piles and have been sold to KazStroyService Infrastructure India Pvt Ltd and Valecha Engineering Ltd for their site at Paradip. Suretech also represents Taets Techniek BV for its pile breakers in India and has an installation base of over 45 machines across the country. Some esteemed clients include Simplex Infrastructures Ltd, Navayuga Engineering Company Ltd, Afcons Infrastructure Ltd, Larsen & Toubro Ltd, IVRCL Infrastructures & Projects Ltd, Paresh Constructions & Foundations Pvt Ltd, Shapoorji Pallonji & Co Ltd, Punj Lloyd Ltd and KND Engineering Technologies Ltd, etc.(Communication by the management of the company)