Bradford Police HQ demolition commences

The video you see above is Bradford Police Headquarters. It's a memorable building due to the fact it was opened by the Queen in 1974. But it has remained unused since 2008 and the land has been earmarked for another project.

This week demolition commenced on the building and it isn't taking long to raise it to the ground:





Its replacement is a City Park covering six-acres. It will be used to host regular events with up to 10,000 visitors. Local residents can look forward to music concerts, sporting events, and a number of new markets visiting the area once completed.

Councillor Adrian Naylor, executive member for regeneration, said:

"The former police station demolition is a significant point not only for the City Park but also the city's regeneration.

The City Park is about more than creating an attractive urban environment, it's about social and economic sustainability, economic investment, tourism and communities."

Source: BBC News

Edinburgh Council fined £14,000 for employee asbestos exposure

Joiners working for Castlebrae Community High School in Edinburgh were exposed to asbestos leading to a £14,000 fine for Edinburgh Council.

Two doors were removed from the school's physics room and taken to a Council joinery workshop where they were modified to have viewing panels put in them. The holes were cut out using saws which created a large amount of white dust. The two people involved in doing the work did not wear masks initially, and later opened an exterior door to let the white dust out. That dust turned out to be asbestos.

In total, ten employees came into contact with the dust. Health and safety officials investigated and later had the workshop decontaminated. They also found the school did not have adequate information regarding materials used in its construction. No one thought to check the Asbestos Register either.

HSE inspector Mike Orr commented:

"The risks from asbestos are well known and it is imperative that precautions to manage those risks are put in place.

City of Edinburgh Council should have been well aware of its responsibilities. Its failings are clear.

As this case demonstrates, those most likely to be at risk from asbestos are tradesmen. Every week, 20 tradesmen die from asbestos-related diseases, including mesothelioma - an incurable cancer."

In court, City of Edinburgh Council pleaded guilty to four charges including:

- failing to make a risk assessment prior to carrying out work
- failing to prepare a written plan
- breaching a duty to manage asbestos in non-domestic premises
- failing to take measures to prevent employees being exposed to the substance

Sheriff Isabella McColl also pointed out that the fine would have been much higher for a non-public body.

Source: STV

Sonim XP2.10 Spirit - the perfect phone for demolition sites?

Most mobile phones you see today have a big touchscreen display, Internet access, run apps, and cost a small fortune.

However much you may want such a phone, working in the demolition industry doesn't really suit these shiny, fragile gadgets. One drop on to a hard floor, or into water, and you've got an expensive trip to your local phone shop.

One manufacturer is catering for such environments though, and they've just release a new phone. It's called the Sonim XP2.10 Spirit and it's so tough you can hammer a nail with the screen. Here's the proof:



It may not be an iPhone, or have a huge touchscreen display, but it won't break even if you run over it with your car. It also has a speaker that's twice as loud so you can hear it over machinery, and if it breaks in the first 3 years of use, Sonim give you a new one for free.

You can check out more video footage of the XP2.10 Spirit being put through its paces here.

Scrapyard claw crushes man, prompts prosecution and £50,000 fine

A lack of warning signs, no published site rules, and no formal systems for work, led to the death of a man in 2007 at a metal recyclers.

Barry and Joey Collins entered the James Huntley & Sons Ltd. of Sholing, Southampton metal recycling site on August 2nd, 2007. Access was gained through an open gate at the back of the site.

They were looking at a van and Barry got in to look at its parts. While inside, the scrapyard grab claw returned. Joey, standing outside the van, tried to signal to the driver that his brother was in the van. The driver misunderstood and proceeded to pick it up, crushing and killing Barry.

Roger Upfold, HSE Inspector, commented:

"This was a truly tragic miscommunication that led to a man’s death. Had simple measures been in place to control site access and let members of the public know where they should and shouldn’t go, this awful incident would probably never have happened.

Recycling sites are dangerous work environments. As such, warning notices, communication of site rules, and the use of high visibility clothing, should all be used to set clear expectations for the behaviour of visitors.”

The company pleaded guilty to the following:

- Breaching section 3(1) of the Health and Safety Work etc Act 1974
- Contravening Regulation 3(6) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999

The case ended on November 27th last year with a fine of £50,000 awarded alongside £34,373.80 in costs.

Source: HSE

New Look fined £400,000 for fire safety breaches

Late last year high street retailer New Look was hit with a heavy fine of £400,000 due to fire safety breaches.

A combination of lack of health and safety coupled with untrained staff lead to a blaze at a branch of the retailer on Oxford Street, Central London.

It's hard to believe, but staff in the store disabled the fire alarm when it went off, and ignored smoke on the evening of April 26th, 2007. Even though the store was full of shoppers, and smoke is usually a very bad sign, staff members decided to ignore the problem.

It wasn't until glass was heard breaking and the store started to heat up that an evacuation was carried out. The fire had taken hold on the 2nd floor storeroom.

Once the fire had been put out it was too late and the building damage was so great it had to be demolished. New Look was taken to court over the incident and fined £250,000 for a lack of fire risk assessment, and £150,000 for not training staff.

The judge in the case at Southwark Crown Court said:

"We are here dealing with a multitude of very real and deeply disturbing breaches, resulting in a system falling a very long way below the standard required and to be expected of a company of this size. As a result of these failures the potential for real human tragedy was always there."

Alongside the £400,000 fine another £136,000 was demanded to pay costs.

New Look has since reviewed health and safety alongside training for all its store staff.

Source: BBC News

IDE try to foster closer relationship with Institute of Construction Management

IDE President Terry Quarmby and Vice President John Woodward, attended the 50th Anniversary Ball of the Institute of Construction Management in Southsea on Saturday 6th February to try to foster a better relationship between the two institutes.

Terry and John, who are both members of IConstM, met with the National Vice President, Regional President and Vice President and a number of Past Presidents of IConstM to discuss how the two institutes could grow closer together with the staging of joint regional meetings, encourage IConstM members to attend IDE events (particularly seminars) and encourage IDE members to apply for membership of IConstM.

The meeting went well with the agreement that the IDE will notify IConstM of all planned events and IConstM will do the same. Terry and John agreed to attend regional IConstM events in their respective regions and will review the relationship in 6 months and gauge its success.

John Woodward