Not every concrete cut gets a big machine. Inside a villa bathroom, a riser cupboard, a plant room or a narrow corridor, there’s often no room to bolt on a wall saw track or wheel in a floor saw. That’s where handheld saws take over. The two you’ll hear about most are the standard hand saw (a handheld power cutter) and the ring saw. They look similar, but they cut very differently. Below, you’ll find a quick profile of each tool, then a simple yes/no flow to pick the right one for your job. Tool profile: the hand saw What it is: A handheld power cutter with a diamond blade fixed at its centre. The motor drives the blade through a central arbor, the same way a cut-off saw works. Cutting depth: Limited by the hub. A traditional power cutter reaches roughly half the depth of a ring saw (Husqvarna), which in practice means around 100 to 150mm depending on blade size. Best for: Watch out for: Tool profile: the ring saw What it is: A handheld saw with a ring-shaped diamond blade driven from its outer edge, not its centre. With no hub in the middle, the blade can sink much deeper into the concrete. Cutting depth: Up to 270mm with a 370mm ring, and 325mm with a 430mm ring, for one widely used model (Husqvarna). That’s enough to cut through a typical wall from one side. Weight: Around 14kg for the same model, so it’s still a one-person tool. Best for: Watch out for: Side by side Hand saw Ring saw Typical depth About 100 to 150mm About 270 to 325mm Cuts thick walls from one side No Yes, up to around 300mm Set-up time Minimal Minimal Precision Good Good Blade cost Lower Higher Best job Shallow cuts, chasing, trimming Small openings in walls and slabs Which one? Answer these questions 1. Is the concrete deeper than about 150mm? 2. Can you cut from both sides? 3. Is the element thicker than about 300mm? 4. Do you need sharp, square corners with no overcut? Working in tight spaces safely Small spaces make concrete cutting harder, whatever saw you use. Need a cut in a tight spot? Scan and Core handles small-access concrete cutting across Dubai and Abu Dhabi, from villa bathrooms to tower risers. We scan first, pick the right tool for the space and leave the area clean. Contact Scan and Core for a site visit, or call +971 56 861 9006.
Wire Sawing in Dubai: Foundations & Columns
Some concrete is simply too big for a blade. A raft foundation more than a metre deep, a transfer beam, a massive column or a pile that needs cropping are all beyond the reach of wall saws and floor saws. That’s where wire sawing comes in. It can cut through concrete of almost any thickness and shape, cleanly and with very little vibration. There’s no shortage of heavy concrete in Dubai. In the first quarter of 2026 alone, 824,381 cubic metres of concrete were supplied to active sites across the emirate (Gulf News). Some of that will one day need to be cut, modified or removed. Here’s how wire sawing works, step by step, and when it’s the right call. What is wire sawing? A wire saw uses a steel cable fitted with diamond-impregnated beads. The wire is looped around or through the concrete, then pulled at high speed by a hydraulic drive unit. As it runs, the diamond beads grind through concrete and steel reinforcement together. Because the wire wraps around the element, there’s no blade size limiting the depth. If you can get the wire around it, you can cut it. How a wire sawing job works Step 1: Survey and scan The crew assesses the element, its size, its reinforcement and what’s around it. GPR concrete scanning maps rebar, post-tension cables and embedded services along the planned cut line, so the route avoids anything that shouldn’t be cut. Step 2: Engineering check and temporary support Cutting a column, beam or foundation changes how loads move through the structure. A structural analysis confirms the cut is safe and specifies any temporary propping. Props go in before cutting starts. Step 3: Plan the cut and the lift The crew decides where to cut and how big each block will be. This depends on the lifting equipment available and the route out of the building. A single block of reinforced concrete can weigh several tonnes, so the lift plan matters as much as the cut. Step 4: Drill access holes If the wire can’t simply wrap around the outside of the element, core holes are drilled through it so the wire can be threaded where it needs to go. This is how wire saws cut openings in the middle of thick walls or slabs. Step 5: Set up the drive unit and pulleys The hydraulic drive unit is anchored in place. Guide pulleys are fixed to direct the wire along the cut line and keep it under the right tension. Step 6: Cut wet Water is fed onto the wire throughout the cut. It cools the diamond beads, flushes out the cutting paste and keeps dust down. As the wire cuts deeper, the drive unit moves back along its rail to keep tension constant. Step 7: Support, lift and remove Before the final section of the cut, the block is supported or rigged to a crane or lifting gear so it doesn’t drop or shift. Once it’s free, it’s lifted out and removed, often for crushing and recycling. Step 8: Make good The cut faces are smooth and flat, ready for new connections, strengthening or finishing with little extra preparation. Where wire sawing is used in Dubai Why choose wire sawing? No depth limit. The wire wraps around the element, so thickness isn’t a barrier. Any shape. Curved, angled and irregular cuts are all possible. Low vibration. There’s no impact, so the concrete you keep isn’t cracked or shaken loose. That matters in occupied buildings and next to sensitive equipment. Remote operation. The operator controls the saw from a distance, which keeps people away from the cut line. Clean faces. Smooth, accurate cuts that need little finishing. Quieter than breaking. Far less noise than hydraulic breakers, which helps when working near tenants or neighbours. When another method is better Wire sawing isn’t always the fastest or cheapest option. For walls and slabs within the depth range of a large wall saw, roughly up to 700mm, track-mounted wall sawing is often quicker to set up. For long, straight cuts on ground slabs, a floor saw is usually more efficient. Wire sawing earns its place when the element is too thick, too large or too awkwardly shaped for anything else. Plan your wire sawing job with Scan and Core Scan and Core provides concrete cutting, GPR scanning and structural assessment across Dubai and Abu Dhabi. For heavy elements, we scan the cut line, coordinate with your engineer and plan the cut and lift as one job. Contact Scan and Core to discuss your project, or call +971 56 861 9006.
