Comment

For those of us of a certain age, the Band Aid song “Do they know it’s Christmas” – released in 1984 – and the Live Aid benefit concert that took place some seven months, are historical landmarks. For a short time, there was a very real feeling that music really could change and possibly save…Read moreRead more

At some point a year or two after the Didcot Disaster that killed four demolition men, I posited that there would come a time when we would all look back and see that Didcot had been a turning point; that the industry would have been changed irrevocably. I suggested that demolition’s history would be divided…Read moreRead more

It ultimately took just over three years for the Competition and Markets Authority to make an infringement decision. Three years of wading through the sewage that lies just beneath the surface of the UK demolition industry. Three years of examining the soft underbelly of a sector that has fought long and hard for respectability but…Read moreRead more

There is a very select group of individuals that transcend their chosen field of endeavour. Elvis Presley in the world of music. Muhammad Ali in the sport of boxing. Usain Bolt in athletics. I would contend that there is a another name that could justifiably be added to that list: Howard Button in the field…Read moreRead more

If you were in charge of health and safety within the sport of Formula 1, you would rightly be judged upon the number of accidents and fatalities. If they decreased during your tenure, most would agree you were doing a good job. It is highly unlikely that your success or failure would be judged upon…Read moreRead more

We live in an age when takeaway coffee cups carry a “Caution: Contents Hot” warning. We live in a society in which every pack of peanuts has “May Contain Nuts” emblazoned across the packaging. These warnings are there not because our streets are filled with coffee drinkers sporting third degree burns or because those with…Read moreRead more

I have been trying to figure out precisely why deadlines are a sword that cuts only in one direction – Downwards. What do I mean? Well imagine that a demolition contractor has been given 24, 36 or 48 hours to demolish a bridge over a road, motorway or railway track. Despite the potential hazards involved…Read moreRead more

Imagine that you are a football manager in charge of a team that sits in 20th place in the Premier League (as a West Ham, this requires very little imagination). Your strike partnership has amassed just two goals in the past seven games; your midfield appear to be playing for the opposition; and your defence…Read moreRead more

507 construction workers – 503 of them men – took their own lives in 2021. That means the suicide rate within the construction sector is now almost four times the national average. It is worth noting that this marked a rise on the previous year that was the very height of the COVID-19 pandemic. In…Read moreRead more