It is taller than the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio the Janeiro, has the weight of two Space Shuttles and the total length of the electrical wire in this machine spans the entire Daytona International Speedway: meet the heaviest and most complex building maintenance unit (BMU, also known as a facade access system) in the world.

Nothing ordinary about this BMU

This BMU is created for an architectural masterpiece: the new headquarters of The National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) of 300m (984 ft) tall, which is an iconic addition to the skyline of Kuwait. The BMU will be placed inside the crown of the tower, which is an architectural and a logistic challenge. As it comes to this BMU, almost nothing is ordinary…

This BMU will complete the facade access solution for this tower, that consists of a total of three BMUs. This third “Crown” BMU is the most complex of all three, even exceeding the top of the building itself when fully deployed.

Integrated into the building

This BMU is created for an architectural masterpiece: the new headquarters of The National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) of 300m (984 ft) tall, which is an iconic addition to the skyline of Kuwait. The BMU will be placed inside the crown of the tower, which is an architectural and a logistic challenge. As it comes to this BMU, almost nothing is ordinary…

This BMU will complete the facade access solution for this tower, that consists of a total of three BMUs. This third “Crown” BMU is the most complex of all three, even exceeding the top of the building itself when fully deployed.

Produced and tested in the Netherlands

The machine will be completely produced and tested in The Netherlands. It will be built up at a location, where the ground is enforced with a special 600.000 kg (1.322.773 lbs) frame (!) to counterbalance the machine when fully deployed. The ground below the machine is able to withstand a pressure of 100.000 kg per m2 (66.807 lbs per ft2). After testing, the machine is disassembled again and shipped to the work site in Kuwait.

How it is made

In this article we wanted to provide you with a glance behind the scenes of this amazing project and show you how this BMU is manufactured, from the drawing table to the actual placement on top of the tower.

What is even more impressive is to see the project in full swing in this video or to download the infographic to see all the magnificient facts of this project lined up in a graphical overview.

The magnitude of this project

This BMU has some amazing facts concerning it’s size, weight and complexity:

  • The weight of the BMU is about 136.000 kg (300.000 lbs). That is roughly the same weight as 2 Space Shuttles, 12 times the weight of the anchor of a cruise ship or 140 average sized cars.

  • This BMU consists of a lot of parts. The largest solid piece of this BMU is 15.000kg (33.000 lbs)! This equals the weight of 2 elephants.

  • The hydraulic tank holds 2000 liters (530 gallons) of fluid to supply the machine. This is about 30 times as big as an average car gas tank!

  • Easy accessible; always ready to use

  • It works with a hydraulic pump that has a flow rate of 300 liters (79 gallons) per minute.

  • The largest cylinder used for the BMU has a stroke length of 6,4 meters (21 ft)! For your information, the stroke length is about as tall as a giraffe!

  • The The BMU is equipped with 4 cameras for safety and maintenance purposes and can be remotely controlled.

  • The largest slewing ring has a diameter of 2,6 meters (8,5 ft). It would reach the ceiling of the chamber in a house when positioned upright.

  • More of these amazing statistics? Download our infographic and find out more about the world’s heaviest and most complex BMU!