The familiar international trend of replacing dilapidated high-rise public housing towers with new community-friendly low-rise units was witnessed first-hand by residents of the South Acton estate in West London recently, with the explosive demolition of the 21-story Barrie House towerblock in Ealing.

The 20-week, £0.5m project was awarded to Controlled Demolition Group, Yorkshire. Work began in July 2001 with a 24-man team stripping the block of flats of its exterior concrete and plaster cladding panels. Once the soft-strip and pre-weakening work was completed and scaffolding removed, the company's explosive experts moved in to strategically place 25kg of explosives and 1,500 non-electric detonating charges to bring the structure down.

A 150m exclusion zone and tight security were in force the day of the blow down, with 274 nearby homes evacuated.

Controlled Demolition Group's Commercial Director Darren Palin, said: "As always, meticulous planning went into the project to ensure no surrounding structures would be affected by the blast. The residents of the South Acton estate were in good hands."

The 1960's tower block was demolished as part of the first regeneration phase by the London Borough of Ealing. The demolition made way for 86 new low-rises houses that are being developed for rent and shared ownership by Ealing Family and Northcote. The overall regeneration plan includes major improvements to open spaces and estate roads as well as training and employment initiatives.

The demolition left 10,000 tons of rubble, all of which is being cleared and recycled for future use on the site.