Carrying on its mission to develop a body of knowledge for the demolition industry, the National Demolition Association has posted videos online of the major educational presentations made at its 2013 convention. The videos, covering the educational topics of disaster response, occupational safety and health, environmental stewardship, and business management, are available at www.demolitionassociation.com.
The presentations from the 40th Anniversary Convention – found in the “Our Industry” section of the website under the topic “Disaster Response” – include:
- “Christchurch: The Disaster and its Clean - up” – Presentations by John Weber, past NDA president and former California demolition contractor; Peter Ward with Ward Demolition, Auckland, New Zealand; and Mark Loizeaux, president of Controlled Demolition Inc.
- “It’s Your Ship: Achieving Breakthrough Performance” – Keynote speech by U.S. Navy Commander (Ret.) Mike Abrashoff
- “What to Expect from OSHA in 2013 and Beyond...Civil and Criminal Liability” – Mark A. Lies, Esq., one of the nation’s leading occupational safety and health attorneys.
- “Maximizing Profits with Your Scrap Vendor” – Presentation on the scrap market, curbing downstream liability, and other issues by Andrew DeBaise of Rocky Mountain Recycling.
- “PCBs in Caulk” – Disposing of caulk containing PCBs addressed by Molly Finn, environmental engineer with the U.S. EPA, and Chris Godek of New England Yankee Construction and NDA Environmental Committee Chairperson.
- “City of San Diego’s Construction & Demolition Debris Ordinance: What’s it all About?” – Ken Prue with the city of San Diego discusses the city and statewide waste diversion goals.
- Presentation of grant to Fire Chief of Mantoloking, NJ – Presented by the Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company and Apollo General Insurance to the Fire Department of one of the hardest hit towns by Superstorm Sandy.
NDA’s Taylor noted that the development of the new video section is just one of a series of steps undertaken under the Education Initiative. Other highlights include the development of the nation’s first demolition specialization at Purdue University; the development and publication of the nation’s first demolition textbook now is use at Purdue; and full revisions of the NDA Demolition Safety Manual, the HazCom Manual, and the Demolition Safety Talks program.
