When corrosion protection experts Heinrich Schmid took on the maintenance work for Salier Bridge in Speyer, Germany in 2019, they found the slag abrasives they were using to be underperforming. Moreover, the dust levels during blasting were very high. The search for a cleaner and higher performing abrasives has led them to GMA PremiumBlast™ garnet.

The Salier Bridge, built in 1956 has two road traffic lanes, pedestrian and bicycle lanes. the 595m long steel bridge spans across the Rhine river between between Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate.

Heinrich Schmid GmbH & Co. KG is one of the largest construction companies in the industry with more than 5,200 employees and 170 locations in Europe. Besides painting, fire and building protection and insulation, the company offers corrosion protection services for steel and concrete.

According to the company, old paint coating (thickness between 300 - 450 µm) on the steel beams under the bridge must be thoroughly and safely removed as it contained lead, a dangerous and toxic metal. The workers were required to wear personal protective equipment and enter the worksite via hermetically  insulated airlock doors.

The project covered four construction areas of similar size with 1,400m² per area and a total area of 5,600m². The blasting works were conducted in two stages due to the presence of hazardous materials. The coating was first removed followed by rust removal in stage two. Therefore, the blasting works in each area were performed twice.

Heinrich Schmid saved 63% in abrasive consumption and the same constructed second area was completed in half the time. Productivity was increased by 100% due to higher blasting speed, reduced cleanup, post- processing and material handling. 

By switching to GMA PremiumBlast™, the company benefited from these outcomes:  

• Surface Quality: Proven choice for exceptional coating adhesion with reduced embedment. 
• High Productivity: Maximizes productivity and significantly reduces surface preparation costs. 
• Reduced Consumption: Achieves 63% lower abrasive consumption with just 16.07 kg/m² of PremiumBlast™ abrasive compared to 42.86 kg/m² of the previous abrasive.  
• Worker Safety: Minimizes the presence of heavy metals and silica, ensuring a safer work environment. 
• Low Dust Blasting: Significant reduction in dust levels - enhancing visibility and reducing contamination.