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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

I did not bother with New Year’s Resolutions this year: partly because I know from past experience that my commitment is as fleeting as a politician’s promise; but also because there are too many industry resolutions that are now far too long overdue. It is time that the demolition and construction industry truly got to…Read moreRead more

I shouldn’t have risen to it. I am a grown man, not a 12 year old girl. I know that online talk is generally just that. But every once in a while, I find myself sucked into a discussion so baseless that it needs to be addressed. I confess that I took the bait. A…Read moreRead more

I am writing this the morning after the England football team predictably crashed out of the World Cup (again) so please forgive me for the football analogies and the barely concealed disappointment. Back in 2020, the England team failed to capitalise on home advantage and lost in the final of the UEFA European Championships to…Read moreRead more

It is shameful that, in the modern world of demolition and construction, men and women are still injured, maimed and killed in the line of duty. It is shameful that such incidents take years to investigate and come to justice. It is shameful that we continue to employ methods that have been found to be…Read moreRead more

Imagine you work at a McDonalds restaurant (other burger chains are available…). You start out flipping burgers or taking orders but you work hard and you’re never late. Your dedication is spotted and you get a promotion, and then another. Pretty soon, you are a line manager with people reporting to you directly. A year…Read moreRead more