RICS launches guide to sustainability and the property life cycle.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is using official guidance to encourage members to use their expertise to promote sustainable approaches to their work in land, property and construction.

Through its latest guidance Sustainability and the Property Life Cycle RICS details how sustainability can be embedded into the property lifecycle and provides a resource for engaging members.

Sustainability and the Property Life Cycle primarily examines the sustainability interventions and opportunities property professionals can put forward during the design and construction of a building project.

It also forms a starting point for further guidance aimed at the RICS property lifecycle stages, principally: Greenfield/estate management; planning and procurement; new construction; occupation and use (including refurbishment and alterations); and demolition and remediation.

“RICS members are at the forefront of addressing the effects of a changing climate in relation to land, property and construction and providing a response in terms of professional advice,” says RICS Head of Sustainability Standards, Martin Russell-Croucher.

Photos showing the demolition of the Dunkerton Viaduct in 1981 have come to light.

I’m never sure why old photos and video footage of long-forgotten demolition works suddenly comes to light. But I am grateful, nonetheless, because it does give a useful insight into how our industry used to look.

Take, for example, this set of photos showing the demolition and subsequent implosion of the Dunkerton Viaduct in Bath. Although they were taken relatively recently – 1981 to be precise – the fact that they’re in black and white gives them an almost pre-War feel.

It’s a great set of photos, and we’d recommend them to any demolition historians out there. You can find more by clicking here.

Demolition of North Dakota landmark water tower delayed by high winds.

Grand Forks officials said they’re delaying the demolition of the city’s old “Smiley” water tower because of the threat of high winds.

The demolition of the 77-year-old tower with a painted smile and a wink had been scheduled later this week. A statement from the city said crews will wait until at least next week to name a new date.

Getting Personal – New road signs drive the message home.

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) District 2 will remind drivers that workers on the Dana to Downtown project on State Route 44 in Redding are not just the crew, but someone’s family.

Special safety/caution signs with the message “Please Slow Down My Dad/Mom Works Here” will be present during the demolition phase of the Sundial Bridge Drive overcrossing.

The signs were developed by Bill Boutelle, a Caltrans Maintenance Equipment Operator. Boutelle saw similar signs on a trip to Pennsylvania several years ago and thought they would be a great idea to have in the district. The signs can now be seen statewide.

“These are one of many safety messages Caltrans has on the roadway and a great reminder that those workers are not just highway crews, but someone’s loved one,” said John Bulinski, District 2 Director. “We all need to be reminded about slowing for the cone zone and these signs do that and add a personal message.”

Read the full story here.

Demolition work is about to commence on Kentucky’s famous Executive Inn.

Denney Excavating is about to start work on the controlled dismantling of the “Big E” Executive Inn Rivermont in Kentucky, which once hosted the likes of Frank Sinatra.

Regular readers will recall that the contract to demolish the Big E was one of a number embroiled in the low-bidding trend that we first reported several months ago.

To view a Fox 7 new video update, please click here.

Exclusive video of Ruud Schreijer’s presentation to the Institute of Demolition Engineers.

And Demolition News was there.

The following, exclusive video captures some of the highlights of Schreijer’s presentation. But, for a more detailed insight, please click here to listen to a special one-on-one interview with Schreijer for our Construction Equipment blog.

The UK’s Health & Safety Executive issues safety warning over Liftlux scissor lift models.

The Health and Safety Executive in the UK has issued a bulletin to alert employers and employees about recent structural failures of the main support structure (chassis) on Liftlux models SL260-25 and SL245-25 scissor lifts.

This information is being provided in advance of the conclusion of HSE’s investigations so that the industry can take prompt action to prevent a recurrence.

Read the full safety bulletin (and see more photos) here.

Construction equipment “falling from the sky” in Vietnam.

Motorists and pedestrians braving Ho Chi Minh City’s traffic-packed streets now have to face a new danger: falling construction cranes and scaffolding.

As more high-rise buildings go up across the city, more pieces of construction equipment drop from the sky, endangering passers-by, with officials complaining that current regulations simply aren’t strict enough to ensure safety at construction sites.

Click here to read the full story.

Our thanks to Construction Equipment for guiding us to this article.

A demolition operation in Burma has destroyed….a dozer and an excavator!

A demolition operation by the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), an ethnic armed rebel group, has destroyed a Caterpillar D6 track-type tractor and a 20-tonne excavator near the village of Ta-ah Tah in Karen State in Burma. KNLA forward scouts strapped the explosives under the engines and detonated them at 1 am on September 21 with a remote.

Sources said the machines were used in mining and in building the new military road by the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, a group that broke away from the Karen National Union, the political wing of the KNLA.

Read the full story here.

Peter Jones warns that foam panels could negate Kyoto environmental gains.

Any environmental gains made by the Kyoto agreement could be wiped out if Governments fail to address Ozone Depleting Substance foam issue. That’s the harsh message that was delivered to the Institute of Demolition Engineers‘ seminar last week by expert Peter Jones of Peter Jones Associates.

Listen to an exclusive podcast of Peter Jones presentation now: