Follum Fabrikker
The old paper mill at Follum outside Hønefoss was closed down in spring 2012. AF was tasked with demolishing the old production facilities.
Project status
About the project
Steel beams were melted down and resurrected in the form of Jøtul wood burners. Concrete from the buildings was crushed and used as fill material on the same site. Several of the old mill machines were moved and used in other places around the world. There was minimal loss when AF Decom demolished the enormous 140-year-old mill in Hønefoss.
NOK 50 million
Contract price
150 000
tonnes of concrete
Hønefoss, Norway
Demolition method
During the first phase of the project, reusable machines and components were extracted from the facilities and sold. At the same time planning, environmental survey and necessary application work was performed for the demolition and recycling work.
In phase two, all materials that were hazardous to health or the environment were removed manually from the structures. Some of the waste that was transported to external approved waste management facilities included PCB windows and contaminated roofing, as well as remaining contaminated fractions.
Third and final phase of the project involved demolishing and sorting the constructions using demolition machines with a self-weight of up to 130 tonnes.
Circular economy
Large volumes of pure and virgin raw concrete meant that a large portion of the heavier building segments could be processed through a crushing mill and used for filling on the site after the reinforcements had been removed. A total of 15 000 tonnes was recycled. One kilo of old reinforcement equals one kilo of new reinforcement. The recycling process does not weaken the quality.
Mill machinery and components that were not sold were, along with other steel and metal components, cut up and sorted into fractions to preserve the value of the waste in the best possible way.