If not by dynamite, twin tower demolition would have taken years, says expert

Noida, 28th August, 2022: To safely dismantle Supertech’s unauthorized Twin Towers in Noida, it will now take as little as a few seconds, however, it might have taken years if done through any other means.

The approximately 100-metre-tall structures, which are taller than the Qutub Minar, will be safely demolished on August 28 using a demolition technique called as ‘Waterfall Implosion,’ according to Edifice Engineering officials. The Apex (32 storeys) and Ceyane (29 storeys) towers would collapse in less than 15 seconds, literally like a house of cards, while ensuring that no damage is caused to Neighbouring structures – the closest two are only nine metres apart.

Edifice partner Utkarsh Mehta told PTI that they are “100%” convinced that the towers will collapse safely and in the direction they intended, assuring residents of no harm to their homes other than the possibility of “cosmetic flaws” on the outer paint and plasters of some structures.

When asked how many demolition options they had for the twin towers, Mehta stated there are basically three techniques to securely raze any structure of such a size – diamond cutter, robot use, and implosion.”The technique is chosen based on three parameters: cost, time, and safety,” he explained.

He claimed that the ‘diamond cutter’ would have taken over two years to safely collapse the twin towers and would have cost five times as much as the implosion method. “There, we’d have to use cranes to slowly chop down every column, wall, and beam from top to bottom,” Mehta Added.

He claimed that adopting robotics would have made a lot of noise over a period of 1.5 to two years, disturbing the residents of nearby Emerald Court and ATS Village.

“It would have been less expensive than the diamond cutter technology but more expensive than implosion,” he explained.

The Edifice CEO stated that because the Supreme Court had also ordered that this project be completed in the quickest possible period and with minimal disruption to neighbouring residents, the Implosion approach was chosen for the project.

“Since Edifice and our South African expertise partner Jet Demolitions also had precedent and experience from the demolition of Maradu complexes in Kochi, Kerala,” he continued.

The twin towers are being dismantled in accordance with an August 2021 Supreme Court judgement that deemed their construction within the Emerald Court society premises to be in breach of regulations.

Over 5,000 inhabitants of Emerald Court and ATS Village, the two societies closest to the twin towers, will be evacuated by 7 a.m. on Sunday. Some 2,700 of their vehicles will also be removed from the property, and homeowners will be required to remove their pets as well.