IDE returns to Leeds for sell out Spring Seminar

On the 23rd February, the IDE held its 2018 Spring Seminar at the Leeds Royal Armouries. This year the event was a sell out in terms of professionals attending and companies who recognize the importance of the seminar to their businesses and the sector as a whole.

Highlights of the event included a £10,000 cheque being handed to the chief executive of Niemman-Pick UK, a charity dedicated to helping those with Niemann-Pick disease and the debilitating effects it has on the body.

Attendees enjoyed talks given by Erith's Andrew Dyson, Curtins' Russel Bowman, ABB Ltd's Stephen Andrew, Able UK's Neil Etherington, Casella's Shaun Knott, Wayne Bagnall, Sustainable Solutions' Dr. John Henry Looney and Kris Atkins, and finally a comedic break thanks to comedian John Ryan who tackled the taboo subject of mental health.

Full details of the seminar, the talks, and many more photos can be viewed on the Institute of Demolition Engineers' website linked to below.

Source: IDE

10th World Demolition Summit heads to Dublin

Can you believe we are fast approaching the 10th anniversary of the World Demolition Summit?

November 7-8th this year will be the 10th edition of the summit, and we're heading to a new location. Dublin to be precise!

The World Demolition Summit 2018 will be held in the Aviva Stadium, which provides a fantastic range of facilities to cater for the conference, the awards, and of course the networking attendees have access to. The stadium is also more than capable of handling the numbers the summit now enjoys. Last year there were 394 delegates, representing 131 companies from 28 different countries. The 10th edition could (and should) be a record breaker.

Here's a reminder of last year's summit:



The 2018 delegate rate is £600 (660 euros, US$768). For that, you gain access to all conference sessions, networking breaks, drinks receptions, and the awards dinner. There will also be discounted rooms at the nearby Ballsbridge Hotel 4, with those rooms becoming available for booking in mid-February.

There is a dedicated booking page available, or if you'd like more information contact Julia Bossie at julia.bossie@khl.com.

Company Exposes 13 Employees and Contractors to Asbestos

We've been reminded of the value of a detailed risk assessment this week after it was revealed SSE Hornsea Ltd allowed 13 employees and contractors to be exposed to asbestos fibres.

Hornsea runs a natural gas storage facility on the East Yorkshire coast and tasked a team of maintenance staff with removing a non-return valve from a compressed air distribution system. In order to remove the sealing gasket material, they fitted a wire brush to an electric drill. That worked, but filled the workshop with dust.

It turns out the dust contained chrysotile (white) asbestos, which 13 people had then come into contact with over the course of two days before the danger was revealed and the workshop closed.

The Health and Safety Executive decided to prosecute SSE Hornsea. Not only had the risk assessment failed to identify the asbestos risk, but the records held regarding the non-return valve were inadequate. Also, the maintenance team leader had not undergone asbestos awareness training.

As well as the potential impact this dust could have on the future health of the 13 exposed people, Hornsea now has to pay a £300,000 fine and £12,670.72 in costs. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Sections 2 (1) and 3(1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc, Act 1974.

It should go without saying: train your staff! We carry out a range of training courses including asbestos awareness. Please get in touch if you would like to learn more or book places.

Source: HSE

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

A Festive Thank You

Here at C&D we need to say sorry to all of our customers as this year there will be no M&Ms, wine, beer, or gifts of any kind as we thought you will probably get a lot of those things anyway, so instead and on your behalf, we have made donations to a London Homeless Charity, the IDE President nominated charity, a number of local small Justgiving requests, and to Bark Inn Kennels.

Thank you for being great customers from us, and thank you for being great people from the charities concerned.

Demolition Magazine - Issue 22 now available

Issue 22 of Demolition Magazine has now been released and is available to read online or download for free.

Inside this issue, editor Mark Anthony discusses the Age of Uncertainty for the construction sector as we head into 2018.There's also details of RVA Group beign acquired, Keltbray Group cutting emissions, new SFPSG plant safety guidance, and news of a significant collaboration focusing on energy efficiency research.

And all that is just in the first 15 pages of this 100 page magazine!

IDE Regional Meeting and Peaky Blinders Tour CANCELLED

Please note that the IDE Regional Meeting and Peaky Blinders Tour scheduled for tomorrow evening at the Old Crown, Digbeth has been CANCELLED owing to the current weather conditions and the local forecast of -10 degrees overnight tonight and into tomorrow.

As the tour is a walking tour of back alleys and streets of Digbeth there is a risk of ice underfoot on uncleared footpaths and that risk cannot be eliminated.

The event will be rearranged for 2018.

John D. McArthur - Rest in peace

12 Days of Demolition (Christmas Edition)

It's fast approaching that time of year again, and so we decided it was well worth sharing this video once more to get you in the Christmas spirit!

Demolition & Recycling International November-December 2017 now available

The latest edition of Demolition & Recycling International is now available to download and read covering the November-December 2017 period.

The issue is free to read online or in PDF form, all you need to do is register a free account with KHL if you don't have one already.

Highlights of this issue include details of the World Demolition Awards winners, an interview with Lehnhoff, and a feature on compact equipment.

The loss of George Turner

IDE Spring Seminar 2018 Confirmed for February

Please email info@ide.org.uk for more information including booking forms and exhibition space inquiries.

Codsall Dramatic Society present Aladdin

Learning Points: Demolition contractor electrical flashover

We have a UK Power Networks Learning points case study to share with you below.

The subject of the case study is "Demolition contractor electrical flashover" and it's applicable to persons involved in demolition activities. Here are the details:

A demolition contractor forced the door of a low voltage circuit breaker cubicle open using a metal crowbar. In doing so, the crowbar went across the terminals of the three phase service and caused a flashover that seriously burnt the individual and set the building on fire.

The factory on this site was redundant, but the 11,000 volt substation and low voltage service on site were live. No request to disconnect the substation and electricity service was made by the property owner when the factory closed down. Power was still being used on the site, but at a reduced level.

The demolition contractor had requested and had been provided a quotation to disconnect the substation and low voltage service, but had not accepted the terms of the contract or paid for the work to be undertaken. They were fully aware that the substation and services were "live."


The impact of this chain of events was the injured person received life-changing burns to his hands and face.

The demolition company who employed the injured person is under investigation by the HSE for breaches of health and safety legislation.

The learning points from this incident are as follows:

• Never assume any electrical plant or cables on a site are dead unless proven so.
• The CDM Regulations require utilities are disconnected prior to demolition commencing.
• The Electricity at Work regulations require employers to adopt safe system of work to ensure electricity plant is safe before work commences on it.

Roland O'Connor spotted at the Construction Enquirer Awards

Great to see my old mate Roland O'Connor (third from left in the photo) with his Colmore Tang colleagues as they win "Best Contractor to Work For" at the Construction Enquirer Awards.