The Light & The Dark by Mark Anthony

The Light And The Dark

As Demolition magazine editor Mark Anthony celebrates his 30th year writing about demolition and construction, he weighs up the stark pros and As Demolition magazine editor Mark Anthony cons of working in celebrates his 30th year writing about demolition the UK demolition and construction, he weighs up theindustry. stark pros and

cons of working in the UK demolition industry.

LIGHT AND DARK The Light

As a journalist first, I could have written about anything. But I do not regret choosing demolition for one moment.

It is 30 years – almost to the day – since I first set foot on a demolition site. I was a young and inexperienced journalist working for the sadly-nowdefunct construction magazine Contract Journal. I was a junior reporter working on the magazine’s plant desk and had been sent to meet a man called Norman Horsler (who some might recall) from PSE Machinery at a site in St Albans. Sensing that I was a little “green”, Horsler questioned my credentials and asked how much I knew about hydraulic breakers. Perhaps naively, I admitted that I had never seen one in action. Horsler – ever the charmer – responded with a terse: “So why the f**k did they send you then?”

Come One, Come All

Among the many things that demolition demonstrates is that a lack of a formal education is no barrier to entry or to success. I have met men (and it is still mostly men) at all ranks and levels of the industry that speak openly about their lack of qualifications. I have met several that have scaled the heights of the sector whilst being unable to read or write to any recognisable standard. Demolition IS the school of hard knocks. With hard work, dedication, commitment and passion, a lack of GCSEs and degrees becomes irrelevant. And I can think of no other industry in which the upper echelons encapsulate such a broad range of regional accents – This is a sector lacking in silver spoons and bereft of elocution; and it is all the better for it.

A lesser man – or one with the skills to do so – might have seen that as a sign to pursue an alternative career. Bizarrely, I was hooked. Thankfully, Horsler’s brand of diplomacy proved to be pretty much unique. The vast majority of demolition folk were (and still are) warm and welcoming. They are helpful and generous. And for all the roughness and toughness of their chosen field of expertise, they are considerate and charitable almost beyond words.

Although many question the way in which the industry’s training is set, governed and delivered, the demolition industry offers a potential for

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career progression like no other. Speak to a site manager, a contracts manager or a managing director, and it is highly likely that they will have spent time cleaning bricks at some point in their career. Even those that have followed fathers, grandfathers and uncles into the top positions in the industry will have risen through the ranks. They will know the specific challenges and inherent risks of working on sites because they too have worked on sites. They wear this progression as a badge of honour; and they provide the industry with a glimpse of the rewards that hard work and dedication can deliver.

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It is not unusual for London-based contractors to work in Glasgow; and it is equally common for a Scottish contractor to invade England in pursuit of work. As a result, demolition workers will be afforded a great opportunity to travel and to experience new places, new people and new challenges. I am often told that no two days are ever the same on a demolition site; and that is pretty much true. No two sites, no two contracts and no two structures will ever react in quite the same way, requiring those working on or about them to be constantly thinking; and constantly adapting. It is that continual learning that drives the industry and which allows individuals to progress and prosper. Outsiders will point to the potential danger of demolition sites. Of course, there are dangers present on demolition sites of all shapes and sizes. But the UK demolition sector has worked long and hard to address those dangers. It has embraced working methods that minimise danger; they have embraced equipment and technology that has slowly moved man out of harm’s way; and they are constantly striving to minimise accidents, incidents and fatalities. One of the unseen (and unsung) side effects of working in a potentially hazardous environment is a reliance on others. Demolition is the very epitome of teamwork; every person working on a demolition site is reliant upon the help and support of

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LIGHT AND DARK another. That atmosphere engenders a degree of camaraderie that exists only in the armed forces and the emergency services.

exception to something I had written; and I have seen people (myself included) excommunicated from the industry’s inner circle for one perceived misdemeanour or another.

I have personally witnessed acts of kindness that seemingly have no place in such a rough and tough industry. I have seen men and whole companies support their closest competitors in the aftermath of a crisis or incident; I have seen the industry rally behind a cause. I can think of no other industry in which that might be replicated to the same degree.

In the main, however, demolition folk are honest and hardworking. They might be a little rough around the edges (which is probably why I like them) but you’re seldom in any doubt about where you stand with any of them. And they are quietly heroic. The charitable efforts of many demolition men goes largely unreported but is an example to us all. The care they take of the environment IS an example to all industries; the care that some take of their employees (and each other) should be.

Friends for Life

I personally have a passion for big diggers. I love to watch an implosion redraw an urban skyline. I am endlessly fascinated by the spectacle of seeing a building or structure being removed to be replaced by something newer and something better.

My job as a journalist generally requires me to remain detached and unbiased. But, such is the overwhelming kindness, generosity and warmth present in the demolition sector that I have lowered my guard. I have forged firm friendships that will likely endure long after I have hung up my pen or they have hung up their hard hats.

But what drew me to the industry – Norman Horsler notwithstanding – and what made me stay was the people. Admittedly, I did have an online stalker for a while; I was once threatened on my own doorstep when a pair of individuals took

LIGHT AND DARK Without the help, support and guidance of certain individuals in this industry, DemolitionNews would not exist; the Demolition magazine could not exist; and I would just be another dried-up and wizened old hack boring all and sundry with what might have been. I came in search of a sector and a career. I shall leave (though not quite yet) with friends.

The Dark

Demolition is an industry divided. It is a sector of haves and have-nots. It is categorised by those that are within and those that are without. Sitting at the industry’s top table are a collection of household name companies, some of them the closest thing this sector has to possessing “blue chip” credentials. They have attained their positions though years, decades and – in many cases – generations of dedication and commitment. These companies have the financial clout to allow them to take care of their employees; to provide them with the best equipment; to afford them training that stretches far beyond what is

required by legislation. In terms of the demolition work carried out in the UK, this handful of “premier league” players take the lion’s share leaving the crumbs for lesser companies. But in terms of numbers, these companies are in the minority. According to our most recent analysis, there are just under 600 companies in the UK for whom demolition is their primary business. The industry’s top table has room for only about a dozen players. After that, there is a marked “falling off”. While the industry’s premier league players enjoy turnovers measured in the tens of millions (and all the trappings this can bring), the vast majority in the industry measure their turnover with far fewer zeroes. Because of the way the industry is currently structured, those smaller companies are required to march to the rhythm of a drum beaten by their larger rivals. It is those top companies that wield influence over key items such as training, often setting standards that – well-intentioned or otherwise – are difficult or even impossible for smaller companies to attain.

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LIGHT AND DARK The industry remains stubbornly unrepresentative in a manner that saw Benny Hill removed from the nation’s TV screens more than two decades ago. Although some will cite individual exceptions, the industry’s upper echelons remain as white, male and straight as Donald Trump’s staff; and that shows no signs of changing any time soon.

Haves and Have Nots

The division between the living standards of demolition company directors and demolition company workers is probably no worse than in any other sector. My guess is that most Virgin staff do not have a private island to call home like their boss Sir Richard Branson. However, due to the rough and tough nature of the demolition industry, the gulf FEELS considerably wider. If you’re wearing jeans with the arse hanging out of them, and if you’re chowing down on the umpteenth bacon sandwich of the week, the presence of a suit-wearing director stopping by on his way to lunch at The Savoy does not inspire or promote aspiration. It is an unspoken kick in the teeth, regardless of how hard said director has worked to achieve his position.

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LIGHT AND DARK That divide does not end there. While it is true that company owners and directors have been injured and even killed on demolition sites, it is the workforce that bears the brunt of injuries and fatalities. They are the ones for whom cuts and grazes are an occupational hazard; it is their names that appear upon reportable incident accident reports.

excessive use of hand-held power tools – have been reported and recognised for decades but many in the industry have yet to act to protect their workforce appropriately. Further up the scale are issues such as lung disease (smoking remains remarkably common in demolition circles); diabetes and obesity caused by an “on-the-run” diet comprising mostly bacon; and heart disease caused by a combination of all the above.

Future Hazards

Those are the hazards of the now. But site workers will likely have to endure the hazards of the future too.

At the very top of the spectrum are issues such as Mesothelioma and asbestosis. Although the industry has made huge strides in its approach

The nomadic nature of the demolition business means that men (and, again, it is mainly men) are forced to spend a long time away from their families. Although few will admit it, loneliness, depression and mental health issues are not uncommon. Poor diet, alcohol abuse and – more recently – substance abuse is a constant threat. The fact that many demolition workers

are not home for long enough to see their own GP merely exacerbates a catalogue of potential health problems. to the handling of asbestos, unplanned and unexpected exposure remains a threat. There is the less-talked-about threat from silica dust. And as the UK builds much-needed new homes on brownfield sites that were formerly home to factories from the nation’s industrial past, demolition workers might also find themselves exposed to a variety of toxins, carcinogens and other unpleasant leftovers from a bygone era.

Then, of course, there are the direct industry hazards. Slips, trips and falls from height are the here and now; but demolition workers are dogged by a series of health issues that might not manifest themselves for years and even decades to come. At the “lower end” of the health spectrum are issues like Raynaud’s Disease or Vibration White Finger. Both conditions – often caused by the

LIGHT AND DARK

Boom or Bust

If there is one area in which demolition directors and demolition workers come together, it is in their vulnerability to the financial peaks and troughs that plague any industry linked to the construction sector. Directors can see their life’s work (and, in many cases, the life’s work of their forebears) vanish in an instant; demolition workers can all-too-readily find themselves

gainfully employed one minute and claiming unemployment benefits the next. Profit margins remain slim and while the broad-brush advice is to “fix the roof while the sun is shining”, the truth is that the sun shines on demolition so infrequently and sporadically that the roof remains holed and untended for years; unprepared for a financial deluge that waits predictably around the corner. Such financial tsunamis also have a nasty habit of hanging around. We had the sad duty of reporting on numerous company collapses months and years after economists declared the last recession over. And while many have subsequently bounced back – chastened - in another guise, the impact upon many of their workers (and their suppliers) remains farreaching.

No Industry for Old Men

Ultimately, demolition is a young man’s game. The demands the industry places upon directors and workers alike is more suited to the young at heart; the young of health. No demolition worker in their 50s wants to be tramping up and down countless flights of stairs within a tower block while it is being demolished. No demolition director in their 60s needs the stress of keeping themselves, their family and their workforce fed whilst staring down the barrel of an ever-present threat of corporate manslaughter.

LIGHT AND DARK Even with intense competition, seemingly endless legislation and wild and unpredictable fluctuations in the price of scrap, demolition still has the potential to make some people very wealthy. The last recession is still fresh in the minds of many; but the bespoke suits and Rolex watches are back out on display.

name terms with his local Rolls Royce dealership, there are dozens barely scratching a living and driving a battered pick-up that is several years past its sell-by date. Unquestionably, the rewards are there. But for most, they will remain elusive and forever out of reach.

But such trappings are the preserve of the few, not the many. For every company principal on first

Demolition is not for everyone.

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