Texas Medical Center LINAC Demo

The Texas Medical Center (TMC) is a world-renowned medical complex located in Houston, Texas. It is home to more than 60 medical institutions, including hospitals, research institutions and academic institutions, making it the largest medical center and one of the most important healthcare and medical research hubs in the world.

The TMC covers an area of over 2.1 square miles and employs more than 106,000 people, making it one of the largest employers in Houston. Some of the most notable institutions in the TMC include the Baylor College of Medicine, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston Methodist Hospital and Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center.

The TMC is known for its cutting-edge research and innovative healthcare practices, with many groundbreaking medical advancements having been made there. The TMC is also a major driver of economic growth in the region, generating over $25 billion in annual economic activity.

The existing hospital is being renovated and expanded to update facilities for the upcoming bioscience expansion in the Houston Medical Center. As longtime readers of Concrete Openings would know from previous articles such as Medical Vault at Stanford Removed Using Diamond Cutting featured in December of 2021, renovating and expanding an existing hospital is an extremely complex process. Not only is it essential to ensure that the hospital is equipped to meet the needs of patients and staff in the future, but typically, the hospital must stay operational during these renovations to support the patients.

CSDA member Aggregate Technologies, Inc. was contracted to assist in the demolition of the treatment room in the hospital storing the linear accelerator (LINAC). LINACs are devices that are commonly used in radiation therapy to treat cancer and produce high-energy X-rays or electrons, which are targeted precisely at cancerous cells in the body to destroy them. They are typically large and complex machines that require a specialized environment for their operation due to the radiation, and therefore require specialty demolition to remove.
Using a GSSI MiniXT Scanner, Aggregate operators first scanned the concrete slab to locate the steel base frame of the existing LINAC and any other reinforcing. Operators scanned the 16’x 8’ area and were able to locate the frame and embedment, which were encased in the 12” thick slab. Operators completed the scan of 128 square feet of concrete in 4 hours.

After the operators had marked the slab and found the reinforcing, they transported their slab saw, power cords, water hoses and demolition robot 200’ through the otherwise finished hospital. Operators checked cords and hoses for tears and made sure everything was running properly.

They then used a Diamond Products Core Cut CC3370E slab saw to cut the perimeter and the base frame in half. Since this work took place in a hospital, operators could not risk producing any fumes from gas-powered equipment and therefore had to use the 480v electric saw to cut. Operators then vacuumed the slurry and cleaned the work area in preparation for the robotic demolition. Aggregate operators were able to cut 56’ of 12” concrete in only 2 hours.

While the slab saw and other equipment were able to fit through the extremely tight opening into the LINAC room, the demolition robot’s dimensions allowed it to barely squeeze through the door opening. The door into the LINAC room is a standard 3070 door, measuring just 3’ wide and 7’ tall. The tight space required Aggregate to use an advanced operator to mobilize the Brokk 260 with a robotic hammer to avoid causing any damage.

The electric Brokk 260 was then used to demolish the 12” concrete encased base frame. During the cutting and breaking processes, operators used slurry vacuums to help maintain a clean work environment. After breaking, operators loaded and hauled the material 200’ through the finished hospital to the dumpster in the loading dock for disposal. In total, 135 square feet of concrete and steel were broken and hauled in 8 hours.

The tight space of this job made wearing hearing protection of utmost concern, and other standard safety protocols were followed such as using water for dust control as well as operators wearing dust masks for ventilation. Aggregate operators were sure to check water hoses and power cords prior to using them as well as prior to loading them back onto the truck to make sure there were no rips, tears or punctures in the cords and hoses to prevent leaks and electrocution. Thankfully, using GPR imaging allowed operators to ensure that they were accurate and safe while cutting and breaking and didn’t risk hitting any underlying material in the slab.

This project was completed by Aggregate in half of the projected time and within 2% of the budget. Kyle Davidson, Estimator and Project Manager at Aggregate Technologies, cites their 25 years in business and reputation as the reason as to why they were awarded this project. “Our strengths, outside of our stellar safety record, are that we have an amazing team of people. We are well-known for our problem-solving skills, innovation, integrity and professionalism. We appreciate hearing positive comments about the work ethic of our team members. At the end of the day, we appreciate being respected for a job well done and projects completed safely, on-time and on-budget,” he said.

Aggregate operators were proud to have the project run so smoothly and without incident. CSDA members like Aggregate Technologies are the trendsetters in the industry and are typically the contractors that are called in when a challenging job presents itself that requires the utmost skill and safety. They have the knowledge, equipment and talent required to go above and beyond. CSDA contractors are innovators and are known to develop the equipment and processes to achieve what competitors in the industry cannot.

COMPANY PROFILE
Aggregate Technologies has been in business for 25 years and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. They currently have additional offices in Baton Rouge, LA and Orlando, FL. They offer clients selective demolition, robotic demolition, wire sawing, wall sawing, slab sawing, core drilling, pile cutting (with proprietary equipment) and GPR scanning. They are also proud to be the one of the leaders in the industry of hydrodemolition. They have been a member of CSDA since 2013.

RESOURCES
CSDA Contractor
Aggregate Technologies, Inc.

Contact: Kyle Davidson
Email: kyle@aggregatetechnologies.com
Tel: 281-579-7229
Website: www. aggregatetechnologies.com
Methods Used
GPR Scanning, Slab Sawing, Robotic Demolition