In "Robot pummels roads with water," the Augusta Chronicle says that an hydrodemolition robot is going to restore seven bridges in Georgia.
It's a robot that destroys everything in its path with a crushing stream of water 15 times more powerful than a jackhammer.
The robot looks like a street cleaner machine on steroids and is expected to begin use August 1 to resurface seven bridges on Gordon Highway from Walton Way to the bridge at the South Carolina state line -- for nearly $3.3 million.
Here is a photograph of the robot, an Aqua Cutter Model HVD-6000, built by Aquajet Systems AB from Sweden.
According to Bob Carvajales, vice president of Woma Corp. in New Jersey, a distributor of the robots, there are many benefits of a hydrodemolition robot.
He said the robot operates on its own after someone programs directions into it, telling it where to go and how much concrete to remove.
The machine also produces less noise and dust than a jackhammer, is more powerful than a jackhammer and requires only about two people to supervise it ([instead of 15 workers for a jackhammer.]
It also "removes faulty concrete but leaves good concrete behind" and causes no vibration in the foundation, eliminating structural problems.
For more information about the technology, please visit this page.
Source: Preston Sparks, The Augusta Chronicle, June 11, 2003
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