Demolition in Berlin

Difficult conditions - economic and weather related - failed to dampen the enthusiasm of the demolition industry at the annual Berlin demolition conference held at the Hotel Berlin. Once again, over 400 delegates and 45 exhibitors made their way to the German capital city, including participants from Finland, France, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Austria and Czech Republic. Unfortunately, D&Ri was not able to attend this year as a result of a clash of dates with the NDA convention in Las Vegas.

The scale of attendance by this number of industry professionals proved that the conference programme was well developed and relevant. This annual event is set to continue - from 2011 it will be organised by the Deutsch Abbruchverband. Delegates were welcomed by organiser Dr Dieter Korth, who was followed by the president of the Deutsch Abbruchverband, Walter Werner, who outlined the efforts and activities of the association over the last year and its plans for future activities. These will be aimed at further efforts highlighting the needs for training to ensure high standards. The return of the Deutsch Abbruchverband into the ranks of the European Demolition Association was viewed as being a particularly positive move for the future of the industry in Europe.

This was followed by the usual intense programme of papers covering a wide range of topics, from new industry standards through to reports on specific demolition projects.