Controlled Demolition Inc: “Here’s the company that’s going to bring down Martin Tower” (28)

• It made the Riviera, a legendary Las Vegas casino of the Rat Pack era, and Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Stadium disappear in mere seconds. It’s toppled four, 3,000-ton blast furnaces at U.S. Steel in Youngstown, Ohio, and choreographed a tricky implosion of the remnants of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, the target of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
• “They’re big. They know what they’re doing,” said Robert Novatnack, Bethlehem’s emergency management director. “We’re confident they’ll do it right.”
• The owners sought a specialized firm with a national reputation to demolish the 332-foot-tall, cruciform building that once served as the world headquarters of Bethlehem Steel. “They’re the gold standard with a history that goes back to 1947,” said Duane Wagner, a representative of the developers.
• Controlled Demolition bills itself as imploding tall structures with such precision the building falls within its own footprint.
• Their portfolio includes buildings in dense urban areas as well as remote locations.
• Its explosions have been featured in Hollywood, including “Batman: The Dark Knight,” “Lethal Weapon 3,” “Demolition Man” and “Child’s Play.”
• Less than 1% of all demolition are implosions, according to the association.
• Much of the interior character of the once opulent offices has been gutted over the last two years as contractors stripped the walls to the beams in order to get remove asbestos in preparation for demolition.

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