Child labour be damned; this kid can drive!

We were very torn about publishing the following video. What you are about to see is just about as far outside the health and safety remit as it is humanly possible to go; and there are also some worrying child labour overtones to consider.

But, at the same time, a good many of the leading players in the global demolition business have fond memories of getting behind the levers at an early age; and most of them are still here to tell the tale.

So, on balance, we thought we’d share this with you and run the risk of a safety email meltdown:

Frenchtown building imploded on Saturday

An old Smurfit Stone building is no more, after crews with Industrial Technologies worked for two weeks cutting away supports from the base of the building before placing about 1,400 shape charges, which can cut through three inches of steel like butter.

The implosion formed a neat pile of rubble that will be cut up with mechanical shearers and removed.

Industrial Technologies owner Dave Murray said the implosion was an “absolute best case scenario.”

“This is a perfect job. You imagine something that’s that massive and it’s that far close to the ground. We’re happy with what we do.”

Read more here, or view the video below:

150 metre chimney succumbs to blast yet falls remarkably slowly.

The first time we watched this video, we assumed that it was a slow motion replay, such is the time it takes for this 150 metre chimney to actually hit the ground.

But, on repeated views, it seems that this chimney was simply in no hurry to fall:

Concrete pillar hits Tacoma street, punctures water main.

A Washington state Transportation Department spokeswoman says a section of a concrete pillar has fallen on a Tacoma street during demolition of an old highway overpass, punching a hole in a water line.

Spokeswoman Claudia Baker said the section of South Tacoma Way would remain closed through Monday morning while demolition plans are reviewed.

A Tacoma Public Utilities spokeswoman said several businesses in the area were without water service Friday afternoon due to the damage to a Tacoma Water main.

Read more here or view the video below:

Extremists are hijacking the good name of demolition equipment manufacturers.

It was a feeling of déjà vu all over again this morning when I turned on my PC and was greeted by a headline that read: UN official calls for action as Volvo machines used to demolish Palestinian homes.

After the initial shock of such a forceful headline, the story began to take on a very familiar tone. It suggested that Volvo was, in some way, supporting the Israeli position, was somehow complicit in crimes against the Palestinian people, and that its products should be boycotted.

Sound familiar? It should. This was precisely the same line that was used against JCB just last year.

At the time, we leapt to JCB’s defence and we do likewise with Volvo. Both are reputable manufacturing companies that sell their products around the world. The fact that those products occasionally turn up in a conflict zone is no reflection upon the political leanings of either.

But it runs deeper than that. Intrigued by the fact that the same website that had cited both JCB and Volvo, I dug a little deeper. And lo and behold, the mighty Caterpillar was similarly accused in the middle of last year.

If you were being kind, you might accept that this was merely amateurish reporting. If you were slightly more cynical, you might use the word propaganda.

If you’re like me however, you would see it for what it really is – The crass exploitation of reputable company names to help publicise extremist views.

The fact is that names like Caterpillar, JCB and Volvo (and, as it transpires, McDonalds) are big search terms on Google, Bing and a host of other Internet search engines. So anyone searching for these names will eventually land upon a page accusing them of war crimes.

Whether the people searching are foolish enough to believe these ridiculous claims is not the point. The point, purely, is to attract readers to politically-biased websites.

Contractor fined over asbestos exposure.

Workers were exposed to dangerous asbestos fibres following a catalogue of errors by an engineering company and a building firm during a demolition and refurbishment project in Swansea, a court has heard.

The project was badly managed, with untrained staff put in charge of the operation, and was underpinned by inadequate surveys for the presence of asbestos and poor planning throughout.

Neath Magistrates’ Court was told today (10 January) that Wall Colmonoy Ltd had contracted Oaktree Construction to renovate a building opposite its premises in Pontardawe, Swansea, in December 2010 in order to expand its operations.

The engineering firm had two asbestos management surveys for the site, which, although later deemed to be inadequate, identified the presence of asbestos material and highlighted other areas, such as the ceiling voids, which were presumed to contain asbestos.

Despite this, work was allowed to begin in the building, even though Trebanos-based Oaktree had been advised by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) that a separate ‘Refurbishment and Demolition Survey’ was also required before any activity commenced.

During the demolition works an asbestos insulation board (AIB) covering a steel column was damaged, and a Wall Colmonoy employee was told to tape plastic bags around it. Work continued in the building for several months with the AIB debris left lying on the floor until an unannounced visit was carried out by an HSE inspector.

A subsequent HSE investigation found that Wall Colmonoy failed to appoint a competent Construction, Design and Management co-ordinator and principal contractor to plan and manage the construction work, and ignored advice from its own health and safety manager to notify HSE of the demolition phase of the project, as is required by law.

Read more here.

Pair held at gunpoint after attempting to steal wrecking ball.

We wouldn’t condone theft of any kind, but we must admit to a certain admiration for the optimism and sheer cajones of a pair of Florida thieves that attempted to steal a wrecking ball by putting it in a car.

But the struggle to get 200 pounds of steel into their getaway vehicle was the least of their problems as they had reckoned without a shotgun-toting 64-year old crane company owner who detained the pair until the police arrived to make an arrest.

The owner, who told deputies his business was burglarized earlier in the week, staked out his business overnight to see if the burglars would hit again.

“I don’t know how the hell they picked it up, it weighs over 200 pounds,” the caller told dispatchers in the 911 call. “But yeah, they are definitely stealing and it’s in the car.”

The owner confronted the men, armed with a shotgun, and detained them until deputies arrived.

To read more, view a local news video or to listen to a recording of the 911 call to police, please click here.

City cites two West Philly businesses destroyed by city-contracted demolition crew

People throughout West Philadelphia were devastated to watch Elena’s Soul Lounge, a reputedly century-old meeting place for drinks, music and food drawing people from both east and west of Cedar Park, burn to the ground on Christmas Eve. What happened later that week, however, is confounding: The demolition crew taking apart Elena’s severely damaged the two neighboring businesses, Gary’s Nails and the new-but-beloved Cedar Park Cafe, affectionately known to some as “breakfast-lunch.”

The fire that destroyed Elena’s had left both businesses largely intact; the cafe even opened the next day. Today, Gary’s and Cedar Park Cafe’s roofs are caved in, and orange violation notices from the Department of Licenses and Inspections are pasted to their facades: they have 30 days, as of Dec. 28, to repair or demolish their buildings.

The irony is that L&I hired the company that demolished Elena’s — the same company that ultimately sent Elena’s walls crashing through the two adjacent roofs. L&I spokesperson Maura Kennedy contends the city was forced to act when the building owner did not take the legally required action on their own, but she refused to say whether the demolition company might have acted recklessly —though she implied that they did not.

Read more here.

5lbs of explosives will fell 100 foot mast.

Fort Hood officials will demolish an obsolete military radio tower Wednesday in Topsey.

The approximately 70-year-old tower stands 100 feet on the T.W. Whatley Jr. estate.

Engineers from the 36th Engineer Brigade will use explosives to demolish the structure that has been requested to be removed by the estate administrator.

Approximately five pounds of explosives will be used and materials from the tower will be recycled through Fort Hood recycling facilities.

Read more here.

Two in two weeks as yet another machine falls into basement.

Joking aside, we would like to propose that companies name and shame the operators responsible for this subterranean parking craze. No amount of training and guidance seems to be getting the message across, so maybe the threat of global humiliation might.

Read more here.